Hightail

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˈhaɪ.teɪl/

Definitions

1. To make a quick and urgent exit from a place, typically to avoid trouble or danger
2. To leave hurriedly from a location, often in response to an immediate threat or uncomfortable situation
3. To leave a location swiftly and without delay, often to escape an undesirable circumstance ; to move away quickly in order to avoid harm or trouble

Etymology: The image behind this verb is a running deer. When a frightened animal bolts, it lifts its tail high, and the compound "high" plus "tail" describes that posture. Applying the phrase to people fleeing a scene is a figurative leap from the animal's behavior to a human one, and the verb took on the sense of leaving quickly to escape danger or discomfort. The verb is a straightforward compound of two ordinary English words, so there is no inventor or single first use to point to. The meaning stayed close to the picture: someone who hightails it is, in effect, running off with the same urgency a startled deer shows.

Synonyms: flee, run away

Antonyms: linger, stay