hijacking
hijacking — noun
1. a serious crime in which armed people take over a moving aircraft, ship, bus, or
a serious crime in which armed people take over a moving aircraft, ship, bus, or car and force the driver or crew to obey them
Ezra reported the bus hijacking to the police in Nairobi.
noun + of + vehicle pattern
The hijacking of the cargo plane lasted nine hours before the pilots regained control.
the hijacking of + vehicle, common headline pattern
Three passengers were injured during the hijacking last Tuesday morning.
After the ferry hijacking, Greek police arrested four suspects near Athens.
News reports compared the failed hijacking to similar attacks in the 1970s.
- skyjacking
specifically the hijacking of an aircraft; rarer term
- carjacking
specifically forcing a driver out of their car at the roadside
文法句型
a hijacking of [vehicle]
the hijacking of [vehicle]
用法筆記
Subject of the hijacking is almost always a vehicle in motion (plane, ship, bus, truck). Use compound forms like 'plane hijacking', 'bus hijacking' to specify the vehicle.
常見錯誤
2. the act of grabbing control of something — such as a meeting, a public campaign,
the act of grabbing control of something — such as a meeting, a public campaign, or a piece of software — that belongs to other people, and steering it toward your own purpose
Hari accused the loud minority of the hijacking of the town hall meeting.
the hijacking of + event/meeting pattern
Critics described the new law as a hijacking of the original reform proposal.
metaphorical hijacking of a process/proposal
Browser hijacking by malware can redirect every search to fake websites.
Élise wrote an article about the corporate hijacking of an environmental campaign.
- takeover
neutral term; hijacking implies unfair or hostile seizure
- appropriation
formal; suggests using something for purposes its owners did not intend
文法句型
the hijacking of [event/process]
用法筆記
Used figuratively when one group seizes a public process, event, or system for selfish ends. Often followed by 'of' + the thing taken over.
常見錯誤
hijacking — verb
1. to use weapons or threats to take charge of a moving plane, ship, bus, or train,
to use weapons or threats to take charge of a moving plane, ship, bus, or train, and force the driver or crew to do what you say
Four armed men tried to hijack the early flight from Cairo to Rome.
hijack + flight/plane — classic collocation
Zayd watched the news as bandits hijacked a fuel truck near the border.
hijack + truck/cargo vehicle
The cruise ship was hijacked off the Somali coast by a small armed group.
Jabari refused to open the cockpit door, so the attacker could not hijack the plane.
Police officers stopped two teenagers who were trying to hijack a delivery van.
- commandeer
formal; can apply more broadly to seizing any resource
- seize
general term for taking by force; less specific to vehicles
- release
give back control of the vehicle and people
文法句型
hijack + [vehicle]
be hijacked
用法筆記
Object must be a vehicle that is currently in transit or about to depart. Frequently appears in the passive ('was hijacked') in news reporting. Distinguish from sense 2 (stealing goods) — sense 1 focuses on controlling the vehicle itself.
常見錯誤
2. to force a moving truck, lorry, or delivery vehicle to stop on the road so that
to force a moving truck, lorry, or delivery vehicle to stop on the road so that you can steal whatever it is carrying
Robbers hijacked a delivery truck full of electronics outside the warehouse.
hijack + truck + cargo description
João reported that two cars hijacked his fuel tanker on the highway last night.
third-party report frame
The criminals planned to hijack the cash transport van between two cities.
Smugglers hijacked several gold shipments along the mountain road last summer.
文法句型
hijack + [vehicle]
hijack + [goods]
用法筆記
Object often names the cargo as well as the vehicle (a 'cash transport van', a 'fuel tanker'). Distinguish from sense 1 by the criminal's goal: here they want the goods inside, not control of the vehicle itself.
常見錯誤
3. in older American usage, to take a person away by force and hold them against th
in older American usage, to take a person away by force and hold them against their will, especially for money or some other demand
In the old newspaper story, gangsters hijacked Eric outside his uncle's bakery.
period/historical framing for archaic sense
Yan said the film's villain hijacks the heroine from a busy train station.
narrative/fictional use
Local legend tells how outlaws once hijacked a young schoolteacher from her classroom.
The script writers had Tamar's character hijacked and held for three months.
文法句型
hijack + [person]
用法筆記
Dated American usage now almost entirely replaced by 'kidnap'. Mostly found in old crime stories or period fiction. Modern English speakers will normally choose 'kidnap' for any real-life report.
常見錯誤
4. to take charge of something that belongs to a group — for example, a meeting, a
to take charge of something that belongs to a group — for example, a meeting, a debate, a website, or a campaign — and steer it toward your own goals instead of theirs
Pim worried that lobbyists were trying to hijack the climate summit again this year.
hijack + meeting/summit — political process
Christopher complained that two angry parents hijacked the whole school board meeting.
hijack + meeting — domestic civic example
Hackers had hijacked the company website and replaced the homepage with their own message.
Critics said the studio had hijacked an indie film festival to promote a blockbuster.
Shirin warned us that off-topic posts were starting to hijack the online discussion.
- commandeer
formal; can be neutral, while hijack always implies wrong-doing
- monopolize
suggests taking all the attention or time, but without the seizure connotation
文法句型
hijack + [event/process/system]
用法筆記
Always carries a negative or critical tone — the speaker disapproves of the takeover. Object is usually a shared process, event, system, or platform, never a physical object.
常見錯誤
5. in older slang usage, to cheat someone or to demand money from a person or busin
in older slang usage, to cheat someone or to demand money from a person or business by means of threats, often in a long-running protection racket
Heather read how mobsters used to hijack small shop owners for weekly payments.
historical / period framing
The novel describes how gang leaders hijacked dock workers for a share of every wage.
hijack + worker group, historical context
Min researched cases where criminals hijacked immigrant families through fake immigration fees.
The detective claimed that local gangs had hijacked half the laundromats in the district.
- extort
standard term; widely used in legal and news contexts
- shake down
informal American verb for demanding money by threats
文法句型
hijack + [person/business]
用法筆記
Highly informal and old-fashioned; modern speakers say 'extort' or 'shake down'. Mostly appears in crime fiction or historical accounts.