noun
hitch
A period of duty, especially in the military.
She is serving a second hitch in the Navy.
Etymology
The jerking, catching, and fastening uses form one English family. Obstructions and periods of service extend those uses; deeper ancestry is uncertain.
More examples
- He signed up for another hitch after his first enlistment.
- The letters describe his final hitch overseas.
- A four-year hitch kept her away from home.
Forms
hitch · hitches
Similar words
- tour
- A period of duty, often at a particular posting.
- enlistment
- A contracted period of military service.