To hike means to take a long walk, especially outdoors through natural areas like forests, mountains, or trails. When you hike, you're walking with purpose through terrain that might include hills, rocks, streams, or wilderness paths, covering significant distance in natural settings. A family might hike up a mountain trail on Saturday morning, or a scout troop might hike several miles through the woods to reach their campsite.

Hiking differs from regular walking because it usually involves nature, distance, and sometimes challenging terrain. While walking to school might take ten minutes on sidewalks, a hike might last hours and require sturdy shoes, water, and maybe even a map. People hike for exercise, adventure, or simply to experience beautiful places that cars can't reach.

The word also means to pull or raise something upward with effort. You might hike up your socks when they're slipping down, or hike a heavy backpack higher onto your shoulders. In football, the center hikes the ball to the quarterback to start each play, snapping it backward between their legs. Stores might hike their prices, meaning they raise them (usually in a way customers don't appreciate). When something increases sharply, like temperatures or costs, people say it hiked up.