What does "hitch" mean?
A sudden pull.
Hitch
/hɪt͡ʃ/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A sudden pull.
- Grammar: hitch is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: snag, acute pain, amble, arrange a match.
- Useful contrasts: advantage, benefit, detach.
- Usage evidence: As soon as our manager got off our backs, everything started to go off without a hitch.
How to use "hitch"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "hitch" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "hitch" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "hitch" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "hitch" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "hitch" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "snag" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "hitch", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sudden pull.
- 2 the uneven manner of walking that results from an injured leg wordnet
- 3 Any of various knots used to attach a rope to an object other than another rope.
- 4 any obstruction that impedes or is burdensome wordnet
- 5 A fastener or connection point, as for a trailer.
"His truck sported a heavy-duty hitch for his boat."
Show 10 more definitions
- 6 a knot that can be undone by pulling against the strain that holds it; a temporary knot wordnet
- 7 A problem, delay or source of difficulty. informal
"The banquet went off without a hitch"
- 8 a connection between a vehicle and the load that it pulls wordnet
- 9 A hidden or unfavorable condition or element.
"The deal sounds too good to be true. What's the hitch?"
- 10 an unforeseen obstacle wordnet
- 11 A period of time spent in the military. slang
"She served two hitches in Vietnam."
- 12 the state of inactivity following an interruption wordnet
- 13 A large Californian minnow, Lavinia exilicauda.
- 14 a period of time spent in military service wordnet
- 15 A hole cut into the wall of a mine on which timbers are rested.
"An upcast fault is when the seam is thrown up; to counteract this a "canch" of top stone must be taken down outbye over from the fault, and a "canch" of bottom stone taken up inbye over from the fault, then level up to the bottom of your "canch" at the foreside of the hitch outbye over until you have a regular gradient to the seam on the hitch."
Verb
- 1 To pull with a jerk. transitive
"She hitched her jeans up and then tightened her belt."
- 2 to hook or entangle wordnet
- 3 To attach, tie or fasten. transitive
"He hitched the bedroll to his backpack and went camping."
- 4 connect to a vehicle: wordnet
- 5 To marry oneself to; especially to get hitched. informal
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 jump vertically, with legs stiff and back arched wordnet
- 7 Clipping of hitchhike, to thumb a ride. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal, transitive
"to hitch a ride"
- 8 walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury wordnet
- 9 To become entangled or caught; to be linked or yoked; to unite; to cling. intransitive
"atoms[…]which at length hitched together"
- 10 travel by getting free rides from motorists wordnet
- 11 To move interruptedly or with halts, jerks, or steps; said of something obstructed or impeded. intransitive
"Frank’s breath hitched in his throat when he saw the knife being pointed at him."
- 12 To strike the legs together in going, as horses; to interfere. UK, intransitive
"Stolen[…]A brown Gelding[…]all his paces, and hitches a little in his pace."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname transferred from the given name.
- 2 Alfred Hitchcock informal
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"As soon as our manager got off our backs, everything started to go off without a hitch."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "hitch"?
Common synonyms include: snag, acute pain, amble, arrange a match, arrest, articulate.
How do you use "hitch" in a sentence?
As soon as our manager got off our backs, everything started to go off without a hitch.
How do you pronounce "hitch"?
Pronounced /hɪt͡ʃ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Probably from Middle English hicchen, hytchen, icchen (“to move; to move as with a jerk”), of obscure origin. Lacks cognates in other languages. Compare itch, hike.
Etymology 2
From a medieval diminutive of the male give name Richard.