to hot-wire
24
8.1
- verb
- /ˈhɑtˌwaɪər/
- NSFW
- In one deft move, Raymond draws a screwdriver out of his belt, pops the ignition device off the steering column, and hot-wires the car in under 15 seconds.
- hot-wire a car
- hot-wire a truck
- hot-wire a boat
Examples
-
Anybody here know how to hot-wire a bus?
-
So, I jump into the car, hot-wire it in thirty seconds, and start driving.
Fiction book (1999) -
Oh, my God, you know how to hot-wire a car?
-
I could hot-wire a car.
-
I'm gonna hot-wire this thing.
-
Buzz is trying to hot-wire your Camaro!
-
She has to find someone to help her break into her car and hot-wire the ignition.
Fiction book (1998) -
I'm hot-wiring the car.
-
Jim realizes there are no keys. He busts open the ignition with the gun and hot-wires the car. The van peels out as Marvosa and Ulysses bust through the door.
Fiction book (1995) -
He showed me how to hot-wire a car when I lost my keys.
Synonyms
60
6.8
To start a car with another vehicle's battery
7
4.0
An act of starting a car with a dead battery using another car's battery and cables
1
3.5
To get a car going when its battery is dead using cables and another car
1
4.5
To start a motorcycle engine by pushing a foot lever
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Hot-wire comes from the idea of making a hot wire 'live' with electricity so it will start the engine without a key. So to hot-wire a car is to start its engine by connecting wires directly and using that 'live' electrical connection.