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Glite Dictionary
to hit the waves

to hit the waves

1 4.8
To go surfing in the sea for fun
  • idiom
translation icon : ir a surfear
  • After school, my friends and I like to hit the waves and enjoy surfing together.

Examples

  • Ready to hit the waves.

    City of Angels (1998)

  • So you finish training when the sun comes up, hit the waves since they're there, which is a good policy.

  • So you finish training when the sun comes up, hit the waves since they're there, which is a good policy.

  • You'd think the kid was almost boring until the final act of the film when he hits the waves.

    Blog text (13)

  • And these shorts are a loud, purple pair that look like he's ready to hit the waves in Malibu.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • This prosthetic is waterproof, so Lexi can hit the waves whenever she wants.

    Academic text (2011)

  • During the summer, we often hit the waves early in the morning to catch the best surf.

  • Whenever we visit the beach, we can't wait to hit the waves for some fun in the sun.

Synonyms

to surf
vsto hit the waves
89 2.1

To ride waves in the sea on a board

is about going out to do that mainly for enjoyment and energy
to body-surf
vsto hit the waves
1 6.3

To ride a wave using only your body while lying on the water

involves using a board and is often done for fun and energy

Antonyms

to avoid
∞ 1.0

To stay away from something or not do it to stop something bad from happening

to stay off
57 2.6

Avoid walking on places like wet grass or a freshly painted floor

How Energetic

to hit the waves
1 4.8
to swim
616 1.0
to paddle
57 1.4
to wade
22 2.2

Surface Forms

hit the waves infinitive
hit the waves past
hit the waves past participle
hitting the waves present participle
hits the waves third person singular

Morphology

hit + the + wave

The components 'hit' + 'the waves' can be compositionally understood as 'go to/engage with the waves' (parallel to patterns like 'hit the road'), so a learner who knows the words will likely infer a meaning related to going out into the sea. However, the specific sense 'to go surfing' is a conventionalized, metaphorical extension of that basic idea and depends on an English 'hit X' idiom pattern, so it is not fully predictable for all B1 learners.

Etymology

Hit the waves: The phrasal verb hit the waves comes from the image of a surfboard or small boat going out onto the sea; the verb hit and the noun waves show moving into the water to ride the surf. That's why it now means 'to go surfing' or 'to head out onto the sea for fun'.