Hit and run: Definition, Examples, and Consequences

Meaning 1：hit and run (Hit and run)

Hit and run 🔊

/hɪt ænd rʌn/

When a driver hits someone or something with a vehicle and then drives away without stopping to help or report.

hit and run 🔊

➕

/hɪt ænd rʌn/

An incident where a driver strikes a person or object with their vehicle and leaves the scene without stopping, providing help, or reporting the accident.

📁 Category：Laws & Regulations 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

Compound noun formed from verbs 'hit' and 'run', literally describing the action of striking and fleeing.

💡 Mnemonic

Picture a car hitting a mailbox and then speeding away—hit, then run.

📖 Example

After the hit and run, the police checked traffic cameras to find the car's license plate. 🔊 After the hit and run, the police checked traffic cameras to find the car's license plate.

🔗 Collocations

hit-and-run accident – a collision where the driver flees

hit-and-run driver – a driver who leaves the scene after an accident

hit-and-run charge – a legal accusation for fleeing an accident

🔄 Synonyms

hit-and-run incident (n.) – an event where a driver strikes something and flees

vehicular hit-and-run (n.) – legal term for such an offense involving a vehicle

🚫 Antonyms

responsible driving (n.) – driving behavior that includes staying at the scene of an accident

🌱 Derivatives

hit-and-run (adj.) – relating to or being a hit-and-run accident (e.g., a hit-and-run policy)

hit-and-runner (n.) – a person who commits a hit-and-run (less common)

📖 Cultural Story

First used in early 20th-century traffic laws to penalize drivers who flee after causing an accident. It later became a standard legal term in many countries, often carrying severe penalties.