From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishhitchhitch1 /hɪtʃ/ verb 1 [intransitive, transitive] informalTTTRAVEL to get free rides from the drivers of passing cars by standing at the side of the road and putting a hand out with the thumb raised SYN hitchhikehitch across/around/to He plans to hitch right round the coast of Ireland.hitch a ride/lift (with somebody) We hitched a ride with a trucker.2 [transitive] (also hitch up) to move a piece of clothing you are wearing so that it is higher than it was before She hitched her skirt above her knees and knelt down.3 → get hitched4 [transitive] (also hitch up) to lift yourself into a higher position by pushing with your handshitch yourself (up) onto/on something Gail hitched herself up onto the high stool.5 JOIN something TOGETHER a) [transitive always + adverb/preposition] to fasten something to something else, using a rope, chain etchitch something to something He hitched our pick-up to his trailer. a goat hitched to a fence b) [transitive] (also hitch up) to fasten an animal to something with wheels so that the animal can pull it forwards I hitched up the horse and drove out into the fields.→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
hitch• The soldier hitched a ride on the boat with the youngest princess and her prince.• To hitch hike right round the coast of Ireland and to write a book about his experiences.• Baseball also has become an endless exercise in hitching, pulling and staring in the batter's box and on the mound.• Farrelly rented a house nearby and she would play truant, hitching the eight miles there to rehearse.• The women, who wore sweaters under their low-cut dresses, hitched their clothes and staggered with their partners.• Bees and wasps hitch their fore and hind wings together with hooks to make, in effect, a single surface.• He was unsteady, but he managed to hitch up his jeans and zip them.• On Sunday, Ellingwood hitched up the wagon.hitch across/around/to• She was just as trapped as if she was hitched to a tree.• I caught a ride as far as Columbus, then hitched to Athens.• From New York I hitched to Boulder.• They spent the summer hitching around Europe.• It took an entire day of buses and hitching to get back to camp and when I did they'd finished supper.• In contrast, Jane Alexander as the elder sister and Robert Klein as her bulky beau are hitched to plows.• Lightly hitched to society, he imagined himself bound to grander forces.• His staff were about him; their horses... were hitched to the trees and fences.• Most of the Guernseys are hitched to their stalls, but one is in a special stall.hitchhitch2 noun [countable] 1 PROBLEMa small problem that makes something difficult or delays it for a short timetechnical/slight/last-minute hitch In spite of some technical hitches, the first program was a success. The whole show went without a hitch.► see thesaurus at problemRegisterIn written English, people usually prefer to use (small/minor) problem rather than hitch, which sounds slightly informal:There were some minor technical problems when the product was first released.2 a type of knot a half hitchExamples from the Corpus
hitch• The plan has a hitch: drilling holes for the owls in the trees will kill the trees.• That was the plan if there was a hitch.• There was a hitch - about half the employees did not want to move to a different city.• The shuttle landed without a hitch at Edwards Air Force Base.• The parade went off without a hitch, despite concern about protestors.• And just as the deal started coming together, the first hitch came: Original drummer Dusty Denham left.• Nelson refused to comment on reports of a last-minute hitch in the negotiations.• Come Sunday you're more withdrawn and reticent so any hassle or hitch will prove too much to cope with.• Organic hitch Recently my local baker told me the stoneground organic loaf I was buying would be the last.• There's been a slight technical hitch, so we'll have to postpone the video until later.• This tiny hitch would be discovered only five weeks later, when the first steel columns arrived on site.• a trailer hitch• The operation had not gone without hitches because adequate amphibious shipping and transport aircraft were not yet available.technical/slight/last-minute hitch• However, technical hitches plagued the first night.• However, Rita calmly carried on in spite of this rather inconvenient technical hitch.• Regardless of technical hitches Pathfinders in Space was judged a great success, leading to a second series being commissioned in 1960.• Clinton appeared unruffled by the last-minute hitch, delivering his hour-long address in a crisp and fluid style.• These technical hitches failed to disguise the quality of the music. 