hiccup

American  

[hik-uhp, -uhp] / ˈhɪk ʌp, -əp /

Or hic-cough

noun

• hiccups
  plural

1. a quick, involuntary inhalation that follows a spasm of the diaphragm and is suddenly checked by closure of the glottis, producing a short, relatively sharp sound.

2. Usually hiccups. the condition of having such spasms.

   She got the hiccups just as she began to speak.

3. Informal. a minor difficulty, interruption, setback, etc..

   a hiccup in the stock market.

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verb (used without object)

hiccuped, hiccupped, hiccuping, hiccupping

1. to make the sound of a hiccup.

   The motor hiccuped as it started.

2. to have the hiccups.

3. Informal. to experience a temporary decline, setback, interruption, etc..

   There was general alarm when the economy hiccuped.

hiccup British  

/ ˈhɪkʌp /

noun

1. Technical name: singultus. a spasm of the diaphragm producing a sudden breathing in followed by a closing of the glottis, resulting in a sharp sound

2. the state or condition of having such spasms

3. informal a minor difficulty or problem

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verb

1. (intr) to make a hiccup or hiccups

2. (tr) to utter with a hiccup or hiccups

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hiccups
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of hiccup

1570–80; alteration of hocket, hickock, equivalent to hic + -ock; akin to Low German hick hiccup; see hocket

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Explanation

A hiccup is a jerky, repeated contraction in your diaphragm — it's a sort of involuntary tic you can feel in your throat and chest. People who have hiccups usually make a "hic" sound. Hiccups are a kind of spasm that can be brief or linger frustratingly. One man famously suffered from hiccups for 68 years — for that whole time, not a single folk remedy (doing a headstand, drinking water fast, being scared by someone, and so on) worked to relieve them. The word hiccup is imitative of the sound of hiccups. An Old English word for it was ælfsogoða, "elf heartburn," since hiccups were thought to be caused by elves.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hiccup hiccups hiccuped hiccuping hiccupped hiccupping

But there was a last-minute hiccup: Some members of the coalition felt the deal fell considerably short of what they had been seeking.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026

“It’s just kind of a hiccup along the way to what’s been a pretty long AI infrastructure spending cycle that’s likely to continue,” said Michael Arone, chief investment strategist at State Street Investment Management.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

In the case of AST, the launch hiccup delays the realization of its billion-dollar sales backlog.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

"If we do have a hiccup here and there that is also good to learn from."

From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026

His laugh is deep and has sort of a hiccup at the end, but in the cutest way imaginable.

From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman

For all its little hiccups, “Carrie” does make one feel sad maybe 80% of the time, and anxious the rest of it, which is to say it does its job.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

Now Bob Chesney and the Bruins ask for patience as they work through their early hiccups.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

And that means the company can little afford continued hiccups with Starship, the successor to SpaceX’s tried and tested Falcon 9 rockets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

To be sure, the changes are not without hiccups.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026

My hiccups came with increasing speed and volume.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri

In one July 8 clip, Bolsonaro hiccuped approximately 14 times within the first minute.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 14, 2021

As for Mr. Osborne, who hiccuped for almost 70 years, he learned to live with it after trying various remedies and seeing multiple specialists.

From New York Times ● Aug. 15, 2019

Even as Europe, particularly Greece, has struggled, the U.S. market has barely hiccuped.

From US News ● Nov. 6, 2015

But when Wilder's routine hiccuped regularly in the 1960s, he lost that explosive snap in his barbed approach.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2015

Judy hiccuped as she tried not to laugh.

From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine

The 15-time major winner, 50, can be seen co-operating with authorities and then hiccuping while he is being driven away in the back of the police car.

From BBC ● Apr. 2, 2026

Within seconds, I’m crying, sweating and hiccuping — simultaneously.”

From Washington Post ● Mar. 3, 2022

The hiccuping ultimately "escalated to…a good deal of hiccup-induced puking," he said.

From Fox News ● Dec. 11, 2021

Others, though, would work on exams with hiccuping computers, at uncomfortable tables with other children or adults making noise nearby.

From Washington Times ● Jan. 27, 2021

“What are we going to do, though?” said Hermione finally, hiccuping herself back to seriousness.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

He has performed well statistically this year, converting 7 of 8 field goals, but hiccupped in big moments.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 8, 2021

"The smallest things upset me. The other day I jumped when a woman in the street hiccupped as she walked past me."

From Fox News ● Dec. 5, 2019

Celeste hiccupped or burped and it turned into a small retch, but nothing came up.

From The New Yorker ● Apr. 22, 2019

The technicians are searching this layout for "events," or instances where Holloway's breathing, heart rate or brain waves hiccupped.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 26, 2011

Then she hiccupped and I looked vacantly back into the room.

From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison

Or a friend might send me another sweet video of her newborn hiccupping.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 30, 2021

“I still write too many of her patented hiccupping, chicken-bone sentences,” said the L.A.-based writer and founder of Boyle Heights’ Libros Schmibros.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 24, 2021

His hiccupping went on for hours, and finally ended late that afternoon when their car broke down on the way to their honeymoon destination.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 24, 2021

Lincoln was hiccupping a lot in the third trimester.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2021

She hiccupping and crying and her little nose is red as a rose.

From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett

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