hitch

/hɪtʃ/

/hɪtʃ/

Other forms: hitched; hitching; hitches

A hitch is an obstacle or hindrance. You might be late because of a last minute hitch, like waiting for a family of ducks to cross the road. If things go well, they go off without a hitch.

The word hitch has a gazillion meanings — it’s a hook, a limp, short for hitchhiking, slang for getting married — but the most common meaning is that a hitch is a little problem. If you’ve packed a picnic and then it rains, the weather is a hitch in your plans. Hitches include hang-ups, snafus, impediments, and other things that interfere. Often this term is used in the phrase "without a hitch" for things that go smoothly.

Definitions of hitch

1. verb

   hook or entangle
   synonyms: catch

   catch

   cause to become accidentally or suddenly caught, ensnared, or entangled

   antonyms:

   unhitch

   unfasten or release from or as if from a hitch

   types:

   snag

   catch on a snag

   type of:

   attach

   cause to be attached
2. verb

   connect to a vehicle: "hitch the trailer to the car"
   type of:

   connect, link, link up, tie

   connect, fasten, or put together two or more pieces
3. noun

   a connection between a vehicle and the load that it pulls
   type of:

   connecter, connection, connective, connector, connexion

   an instrumentality that connects
4. noun

   a knot that can be undone by pulling against the strain that holds it; a temporary knot
   types:

   Blackwall hitch

   a simple hitch used for temporarily attaching a line to a hook

   cat's-paw

   a hitch in the middle of rope that has two eyes into which tackle can be hooked

   rolling hitch

   a hitch for fastening a line to a spar or another rope

   becket bend, sheet bend, weaver's hitch, weaver's knot

   a hitch used for temporarily tying a rope to the middle of another rope (or to an eye)

   timber hitch

   a hitch used to secure a rope to a log or spar; often supplemented by a half hitch

   magnus hitch

   a rolling hitch similar to a clove hitch

   type of:

   knot

   any of various fastenings formed by looping and tying a rope (or cord) upon itself or to another rope or to another object
5. noun

   a period of time spent in military service
   synonyms: duty tour, enlistment, term of enlistment, tour, tour of duty

   type of:

   period, period of time, time period

   an amount of time
6. verb

   travel by getting free rides from motorists
   synonyms: hitchhike, thumb

   type of:

   ride

   be carried or travel on or in a vehicle
7. verb

   walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
   synonyms: gimp, hobble, limp

   type of:

   walk

   use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
8. noun

   the uneven manner of walking that results from an injured leg
   synonyms: hobble, limp

   type of:

   gait

   a person's manner of walking
9. noun

   an unforeseen obstacle
   synonyms: hang-up, rub, snag

   type of:

   obstacle, obstruction

   something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted
10. noun

    any obstruction that impedes or is burdensome
    synonyms: encumbrance, hinderance, hindrance, incumbrance, interference, preventative, preventive

    types:

    clog

    any object that acts as a hindrance or obstruction

    speed bump

    a hindrance to speeding created by a crosswise ridge in the surface of a roadway

    type of:

    impediment, impedimenta, obstructer, obstruction, obstructor

    any structure that makes progress difficult
11. noun

    the state of inactivity following an interruption
    synonyms: arrest, check, halt, stay, stop, stoppage

    types:

    countercheck

    a check that restrains another check

    logjam

    any stoppage attributable to unusual activity

    type of:

    inaction, inactiveness, inactivity

    the state of being inactive
12. verb

    jump vertically, with legs stiff and back arched
    synonyms: buck, jerk

    type of:

    move

    move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion