bushwhack

verb

bush·​whack ˈbu̇sh-ˌ(h)wak 

bushwhacked; bushwhacking; bushwhacks

1

transitive : to attack (someone) by surprise from a hidden place : ambush

… the American banditti robbed trains and bushwhacked stagecoaches and settlers' caravans with equal enthusiasm for fistic violence and gunplay.

—James Gray

Williams wears a pistol when he goes into the countryside and worries that someone might bushwhack him because he is outspoken.

—Monty Brower and Bill Shaw

2

intransitive

a

: to travel by foot through uncleared terrain

Other beaches have no access at all; you have to bushwhack to get to them, through terrain infested with rattlesnakes, poison oak, and other hazards.

—Anthony Brandt

No paths presented themselves and I bushwhacked through numerous fallen and dead trees.

—Rob Nicholson

… decided it was best to "bushwhack," or wander off the path to get closer to the barred owl and possibly catch a glimpse of it.

—Eric Koszalka

b

: to clear a path or advance through thick woods especially by chopping down bushes and low branches

… it would allow them to locate their prey without having to bushwhack through the jungle for days or weeks.

—Earth Island Journal

bushwhacker noun

Synonyms

• assail
• assault
• attack
• beset
• charge
• descend (on or upon)
• go in (on)
• jump (on)
• pounce (on or upon)
• raid
• rush
• set on
• sic
• sick
• storm
• strike
• trash
• turn (on)

Examples of bushwhack in a Sentence

The group bushwhacked through the jungle.

They used the controversy as an opportunity to bushwhack their political opponents.

Recent Examples on the Web

After bushwhacking through uncultivated wilderness, the ground team found the woman, the Coast Guard said. —Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 11 Dec. 2024

Mount Eerie, Night Palace In nearly 30 years of crafting gorgeous, scrappy independent records, Pacific Northwest singer-songwriter Phil Elverum has bushwhacked his way to a delightfully unpredictable catalogue. —Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Dec. 2024

Search-and-rescue crews bushwhacking through cold, mountainous terrain came upon the hiker's body within Saturday's first hour on Kinsman Ridge, a feature that leads to Cannon Mountain, the department said. —Joe Kottke, NBC News, 26 Nov. 2024

But their grueling three-hour journey of uphill bushwhacking in the rain ended in disappointment. —Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from bushwhacker

First Known Use

1866, in the meaning defined at sense 1