hooky

Pronunciation: /ˈhʊki/

The English word “hooky” has 4 meanings listed here.

noun

Absence from school or work; truancy.

adjective

Full of hooks (in any sense).
Shaped like or resembling a hook; hooked.
Dodgy; crooked; illicit.

Etymology

First attested in 1848 in New York City. Most likely from Dutch hoekje (“nook, corner; 'spot to hide' in hide-and-seek”). Formerly, "hoekje spelen" could be used to mean "to play hide-and-seek", though the common term for the game nowadays is verstoppertje. By surface analysis, hook + -y.

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More English words

hookup
hookwise
hookworm
hookwormy
hooky-playing
hoolaulea
hooley
hooligan

About this dictionary

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.