hippie

noun

hip·​pie ˈhi-pē How to pronounce hippie (audio)
variants or hippy
plural hippies
: a usually young person who rejects the mores of established society (as by dressing unconventionally or favoring communal living) and advocates a nonviolent ethic
broadly : a long-haired unconventionally dressed young person
hippiedom
ˈhi-pē-dəm How to pronounce hippie (audio)
noun
hippieish
ˈhi-pē-ish How to pronounce hippie (audio)
adjective
hippieness noun
or hippiness
ˈhi-pē-nəs How to pronounce hippie (audio)

Examples of hippie in a Sentence

She used to be a hippie, but she's fairly conservative now. The band appeals to a new generation of hippies.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And by the time a pair of West Village hippies drove up here in 1966, the cider mill’s floors were rotting and its windows were knocked out. — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 13 Aug. 2026 Stewart once owned and operated the legendary Liquid Butterly, a boutique frequented by famous hippies, conveniently located across La Cienega Blvd. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Aug. 2026 Gurel writes that the associations with hippies, dieting, and dessert-like snacks all gave yogurt a feminine connotation. — Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 11 Aug. 2026 But in the late 1970s, the country followed other nations in outlawing marijuana, and chased away the hippies who had flocked to the country. — ABC News, 5 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hippie

Word History

Etymology

hip entry 2 + -ie

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hippie was in 1965

Rhymes for hippie

See All Rhymes for hippie

Browse Nearby Words

Hippidium
hippie
hippie-dippie
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hippie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hippie. Accessed 16 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on hippie

Nglish: Translation of hippie for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hippie

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of zeugma

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All