hockey
Americannoun
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Also called (esp US and Canadian): field hockey.
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a game played on a field by two opposing teams of 11 players each, who try to hit a ball into their opponents' goal using long sticks curved at the end
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( as modifier )
hockey stick
hockey ball
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See ice hockey
noun
Etymology
Origin of hockey
1520–30; earlier hockie, perhaps equivalent to hock- hook 1 + -ie -ie
Explanation
Hockey is short for ice hockey or field hockey, but it usually refers to ice hockey, the sport where people skate on ice and use big hockey sticks to whack a puck into a goal. For ice hockey, players wear protective gear and helmets. A flat puck is knocked across the ice with long, paddle-shaped sticks. Field hockey is similar, though there is less contact between players, and a ball, instead of a puck, is smacked with sticks. The origin of hockey is slightly unclear, although it may stem from the Middle French hoquet, "shepherd's staff," which resembles a hockey stick.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Netball flourished alongside hockey, tennis, cricket, cycling, swimming and dancing, while students were taught anatomy, physiology and hygiene, theory of movement, massage and medicine gymnastics.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Divers have said are keen to see the diving pools brought back into use and and water polo and underwater hockey players are hopeful the 50m pool could host matches and tournaments.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
The trade brawl could leave both countries with more bruises than a hockey fight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
A White House fact sheet said the new US tariffs will cover "products ranging from wine to hockey sticks to cement."
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Sneaky’s definitely better at air hockey than he is at basketball.
From "Isaiah Dunn Is My Hero" by Kelly J. Baptist
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
