hop

¹ American  

[hop] / hɒp /

verb (used without object)

hopped, hopping

1. to make a short, bouncing leap; move by leaping with all feet off the ground.

   Synonyms:

   bound, spring, jump

2. to spring or leap on one foot.

3. Informal. to make a short, quick trip, especially in an airplane.

   He hopped up to Boston for the day.

4. Informal. to travel or move frequently from one place or situation to another (usually used in combination).

   to island-hop;

   to job-hop.

5. Older Use: Informal. to dance.

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verb (used with object)

hopped, hopping

1. to jump over; clear with a hop.

   The sheep hopped the fence.

2. Informal. to board or get onto a vehicle.

   to hop a plane.

3. Informal. to cross in an airplane.

   We hopped the Atlantic in five hours.

noun

1. an act of hopping; short leap.

2. a leap on one foot.

3. a journey, especially a short trip by air.

4. Older Use: Informal. a dance or dancing party.

5. a bounce or rebound of a moving object, as a ball.

   She caught the ball on the first hop.

idioms

1. hop to it, to begin to move, become active, or do something immediately: Also hop to.

   You'd better hop to it if you intend to buy groceries before the market closes.

hop ² American  

[hop] / hɒp /

noun

1. any twining plant of the genus Humulus, bearing male flowers in loose clusters and female flowers in conelike forms.

2. hops, the dried ripe cones of the female flowers of this plant, used in brewing, medicine, etc.

3. Older Slang. a narcotic drug, especially opium.

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verb (used with object)

hopped, hopping

1. to treat or flavor with hops.

verb phrase

1. hop up

   1. to excite; make enthusiastic.

      They hopped the crowd up with fiery speeches.

   2. to add to the power of.

      The kids hopped up the motor of their jalopy.

   3. to stimulate by narcotics.

hop ¹ British  

/ hɒp /

verb

1. (intr) to make a jump forwards or upwards, esp on one foot

2. (intr) (esp of frogs, birds, rabbits, etc) to move forwards in short jumps

3. (tr) to jump over

   he hopped the hedge

4. informal (intr) to move or proceed quickly (in, on, out of, etc)

   hop on a bus

5. informal (tr) to cross (an ocean) in an aircraft

   they hopped the Atlantic in seven hours

6. informal (tr) to travel by means of (an aircraft, bus, etc)

   he hopped a train to Chicago

7. to bounce or cause to bounce

   he hopped the flat stone over the lake's surface

8. informal (intr) to begin intense activity, esp work

9. (intr) another word for limp 1

10. slang to go away

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noun

1. the act or an instance of hopping

2. old-fashioned a dance, esp one at which popular music is played

   we're all going to the school hop tonight

3. informal a trip, esp in an aircraft

4. a bounce, as of a ball

5. informal

   1. active or busy

   2. unawares or unprepared

      the new ruling caught me on the hop

hop ² British  

/ hɒp /

noun

1. any climbing plant of the N temperate genus Humulus, esp H. lupulus, which has green conelike female flowers and clusters of small male flowers: family Cannabiaceae (or Cannabidaceae ) See also hops

2. a field of hops

3. obsolete opium or any other narcotic drug

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hop More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing hop

• mad as a hornet (hops)

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Other Word Forms

• hoppingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of hop¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English verb hoppen, Old English hoppian; cognate with German hopfen, Old Norse hoppa

Origin of hop²

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English hoppe, from Middle Dutch hoppe ( Dutch hop ); cognate with Old High German hopfo ( German Hopfen )

Explanation

To hop is to bounce or jump, either on one foot or both feet. Bunnies hop. People hop. And, sometimes, people do a dance called the "Bunny Hop." No joke. If you lose a shoe in a rainstorm, you might hop along on one foot until you find it again. You can also hop into and out of things, or up to or down from a height: "Hop in the car, let's go!" Something that's "a hop, skip, and a jump" from where you are is extremely close, a short trip. The Old English root of hop is hoppian, "to spring, leap, or dance."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hop hopped hopping

Ballet flats are back in vogue, and that’s prompted some unlikely companies to hop on the bandwagon with their own riffs on the classic shoe silhouette.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026

Prince-Bythewood admitted that she wasn’t emotionally ready to hop on board and that she didn’t know how to make an epic fantasy film yet.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

As much as I wanted to hop on a plane from New York City to try it, my editor and I settled on a shorter trek, to New Jersey, to start with its sloppy joe.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

"They just hop around from one point to another."

From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026

“You and BF hop over the side. You two are the biggest. I’ll keep the raft clear of the flames—y’all take the rope and haul us to shore.”

From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia

Instead of leaving on either that jet or “former” Air Force One, the president secretly hopped into an airport catering truck and shuttled to an Air Force C-32A, a smaller military plane.

From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026

Kitten Seer hopped onto my chest, stretching her little black fluffy limbs while I scratched her chin.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

Among the many other companies that have hopped on the bandwagon are Verizon, Chipotle, Comcast, Walgreens and News Corp, publisher of The Wall Street Journal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

On a sunny Saturday in June, Lee Yeon-su took the day off from work and hopped on a train from Seoul to Busan for yet another concert by pop supergroup BTS.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

Melissa hopped down off the stage and ran over to Frank.

From "Hopping Mad (The Hardy Boys: Secret Files, #4)" by Franklin W. Dixon

The findings suggest that even a landing near the moon's South Pole could send methane molecules "hopping" across the lunar surface to the North Pole in less than two lunar days.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026

Passengers dodge traffic and airport check-in and security lines in exchange for starting their trip in the suburbs and hopping a cheap bus to the airport.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026

Sean Wakasa, who co-chairs of DSA’s L.A. chapter, said he is excited to see Raman make the runoff and is hopping his chapter will endorse her.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026

Even New York City government agencies are hopping on the hate train.

From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026

She responded with a picture of Mr. Kravitz hopping around on one foot.

From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville