Definition

1. Noun:

   • A ride taken for pleasure, often in a vehicle driven in a reckless or unauthorized manner: A "joyride" primarily refers to the act of driving or being driven around, typically at high speed or in a carefree way, for enjoyment rather than to reach a destination. It often implies the vehicle is taken without the owner's permission.

2. Verb (to joyride):

   • To ride in or drive a vehicle in a reckless, fast, and carefree manner for pleasure: The verb describes the action of taking such a ride, frequently with the connotation of using a vehicle without authorization.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • The teenagers went for a joyride in their parents' car while they were away.
  • Police arrested two men after a joyride in a stolen truck.

• Verb:

  • He was arrested for joyriding.
  • They used to joyride around the countryside on summer nights.

Advanced Usage

• "To go on a joyride": This is a common collocation emphasizing the act of starting the ride.
  • The thieves went on a joyride after robbing the house.

Variants and Related Words

• Joyrider (noun): A person who goes joyriding.
  • The joyrider crashed the car into a fence.
• Joyriding (noun/gerund): The activity or crime of joyriding.
  • He was charged with car theft and joyriding.

Synonyms

• Noun: Spin, drive, excursion (when implying a pleasure trip).
• Verb: To drive recklessly, to take for a spin.

Related Idioms/Phrases

• "To take something for a joyride": This phrase explicitly means to use a vehicle (often without permission) for a reckless pleasure ride.
  • Someone had taken the delivery van for a joyride and abandoned it.

Noun

1. a ride in a car taken solely for pleasure
   • they took their girlfriends for joyrides in stolen cars

Verb

1. ride in a car with no particular goal and just for the pleasure of it
   • We tooled down the street