hippie

IPA/ˈhɪpi/
KK[hˈɪpi]IPA/ˈhɪpi/

hippie — noun

  • hippiesingular
  • hippiesplural

1. a person, especially a young one in the 1960s and 1970s, who chose to live outsi

1.nounB2
Definition

a person, especially a young one in the 1960s and 1970s, who chose to live outside the rules and expectations of mainstream society. Hippies believed strongly in peace, love, and personal freedom; they often wore long hair and brightly coloured clothes, shared homes with others, and rejected war, consumerism, and traditional careers.

Example

Aiko's father was a hippie in the 1960s and still plays protest songs on guitar.

past identity: was a hippie in the [decade]

The old photographs showed Diego with long hair and beads, looking every bit the hippie.

look every bit the + [label] construction

Common collocations
  • hippie movement
  • hippie culture
  • hippie lifestyle
  • hippie community
  • aging hippie
  • old hippie
  • hippie era
  • hippie clothes / fashion
  • hippie values
Synonyms
  • bohemian

    more focused on artistic, literary pursuits rather than political protest; less tied to the 1960s

  • free spirit

    softer, more general term for someone who lives by their own rules; no political or historical association

  • nonconformist

    broader and more formal; describes anyone who does not follow society's norms, not specific to the 1960s counterculture

  • flower child

    dated slang from the same era, emphasizes the peace-and-love aspect more than the anti-establishment side

Antonyms
  • conformist

    someone who follows mainstream society's rules and expectations

  • square

    dated slang from the same period for someone who is conventional and traditional

Grammar Patterns

hippie + noun (movement / culture / community)

a/the hippie

(old / aging) hippie

Usage Note

Frequently used attributively before nouns such as movement, culture, lifestyle, community. Can carry either neutral or mildly affectionate tone depending on context; some older speakers may use it dismissively. The alternative spelling hippy (plural hippies) is also common, especially in British English.

Common Mistakes

He is a hippie, so he lives in a big house in the suburbs.
He is a hippie, so he lives in a shared house and grows his own vegetables.
the word hippie implies rejection of mainstream suburban life, not alignment with it.

Word family

  • hippy
    nounB2
  • hippiedom
    nounC1
  • hippie-ish
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Hippie, bohemian, free spirit, nonconformist, and flower child all describe people who live outside mainstream norms, but they differ in scope and era. Hippie is historically anchored to the 1960s–70s counterculture and carries specific associations with peace activism, communal living, long hair, and colourful clothing. Bohemian refers more to an artistic, literary, or unconventional lifestyle (often in cities) and is less political — a modern artist could be called bohemian without any ties to the 1960s. Free spirit is a gentler, more general label for anyone who values personal freedom over social expectations; it lacks any political or generational weight. Nonconformist is the most formal and abstract — it can describe anyone from a business executive who refuses to wear a tie to a religious dissenter, so it covers far more ground than hippie. Flower child is a dated, nostalgic synonym specific to the same era but emphasises the peace-and-love ethos rather than the anti-establishment protest. For example, a woman selling handmade jewellery at a market might be called a free spirit; if she also lives in a remote commune and was part of 1960s protests, hippie or flower child would fit better.

bohemian ↗free spiritnonconformist ↗flower child

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • dressed like a hippie
  • look like a hippie
  • behave like a hippie

Phrases

  • a bit of a hippie
  • leftover from the hippie days
  • hippie at heart

Prepositions

  • hippie from the 1960s
  • hippie in college

Etymology

African American EnglishEnglish

Hippie comes from hip, a slang word that emerged in African American communities in the early 1900s meaning 'aware, cool, in the know'. Hip was itself a shortening of hep, which has roots in West African via African American English. In the 1940s and 50s, hipster described jazz fans and followers of subculture. By the mid-1960s, the suffix -ie (modelled on beatnik and groupie) was added to hip to create hippie — labelling the young people who rejected conventional society and embraced peace, love, and personal freedom. The movement reached peak popularity around 1967 (the 'Summer of Love').