hoist
Americanverb (used with object)
-
hoists,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hoisted,
past participle, past
-
hoisting
present participle
-
to raise or lift, especially by some mechanical appliance.
to hoist a flag; to hoist the mainsail.
- Synonyms:
- elevate
- Antonyms:
- lower
-
to raise to one's lips and drink; drink (especially beer or whiskey) with gusto.
Let's go hoist a few beers.
-
Archaic. a simple past tense and past participle of hoise.
noun
-
hoists
plural
-
an apparatus for hoisting, as a block and tackle, a derrick, or a crane.
-
act of hoisting; a lift.
Give that sofa a hoist at your end.
-
Nautical.
-
the vertical dimension amidships of any square sail that is hoisted with a yard.
-
the distance between the hoisted and the lowered position of such a yard.
-
the dimension of a fore-and-aft sail along the luff.
-
a number of flags raised together as a signal.
-
-
(on a flag)
-
the vertical dimension as flown from a vertical staff.
-
the edge running next to the staff.
-
idioms
verb
-
(tr) to raise or lift up, esp by mechanical means
-
See petard
noun
-
any apparatus or device for hoisting
-
the act of hoisting
-
nautical
-
the amidships height of a sail bent to the yard with which it is hoisted Compare drop
-
the difference between the set and lowered positions of this yard
-
-
nautical the length of the luff of a fore-and-aft sail
-
nautical a group of signal flags
-
the inner edge of a flag next to the staff Compare fly 1
Synonym Usage
See raise.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
hoistsimple
-
hoistssimple
-
have hoistedperfect
-
has hoistedperfect
-
am hoistingprogressive
-
are hoistingprogressive
-
is hoistingprogressive
-
have been hoistingperfect progressive
-
has been hoistingperfect progressive
Past
-
hoistedsimple
-
had hoistedperfect
-
was hoistingprogressive
-
were hoistingprogressive
-
had been hoistingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hoist
First recorded in 1540–50; later variant of hoise, with -t as in against, etc.
Explanation
To hoist is to raise up or lift, like a crane or forklift would. You can hoist yourself up onto the roof to get a better view, or hoist your teammate onto your shoulders after she scores the winning goal. This word is generally used to describe heavier lifting, like the hoisting of a fallen tree onto the bed of a truck or hoisting the Super Bowl trophy over your head after the big game. In nautical terms, where it comes up often, hoist refers to a group of flags that are raised all at once to communicate a signal.
Vocabulary lists containing hoist
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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.
See Examples For:
He needs specialised equipment such as a hoist which allows him to be transferred from a wheelchair into a bed, or helps him use the bathroom.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Here, a filmmaker who managed to reach the peak of Olympus makes the prideful, ill-fated decision to hoist a ladder toward the stars, trying to get even higher, past where even the Gods can see.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
In addition to Portugal, another nation targeted by Levy’s AI model is Morocco — representing a continent, Africa, that has never seen one of its nations hoist the trophy.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 11, 2026
Malone called the Coast Guard, which sent a helicopter to hoist the man up, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026
The old man gathered his own bones and muscles as best he could and managed to hoist the kid and get him into the pickup.
From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli
"The law means reasonable adaptions, but for people like me that doesn't go far enough – you need the hoists and the beds to really make it workable," he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
He hoists the guitar and launches into a beautiful ballade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
By most measures, the United States still hoists plenty of power on the global stage.
From Slate ● Jun. 8, 2026
Whichever team hoists the winning World Cup soccer trophy this summer will be the recipients of a very valuable prize, thanks to rising gold prices.
From MarketWatch ● May 7, 2026
She hoists it and brings it out, setting it down.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Tony Jacklin lifted the Claret Jug at Royal Lytham in 1969, just three years after Bobby Moore hoisted the Jules Rimet Trophy at Wembley.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
On the other, people hoisted signs: “Save the Garden,” “Keep Our Streets Public” and “Save Clearwater.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
No national team from outside Europe or South America has ever hoisted the World Cup, and while that will certainly change someday, it won’t be this year.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026
A teacher hoisted a huge sunflower made from dozens of balloons -- the plant's name in Mandarin is a homophone for a Chinese idiom about success.
From Barron's ● Jun. 7, 2026
“I’m sorry I haven’t come around to see you,” he said as I hoisted my basket up.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Microsoft on Tuesday sought to reassure European users with a "multi-billion-dollar" deal to rent AI infrastructure from Mistral, hoisting the French developer into the lucrative business of renting compute capacity.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
They barely finish before other mids start hoisting each other into a crude human pyramid.
From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026
Nonetheless, the expectations from the boss are extraordinary—nothing short of hoisting the trophy at MetLife Stadium would make him happy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
But the Rams are not hoisting the Lombardi Trophy just yet, Lake said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
“Join your brothers,” I said, hoisting him up.
From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya
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.
