ad hoc

[ ad hok; Latin ahd hohk ]

See synonyms for ad hoc on Thesaurus.com

adverb

for the special purpose or end presently under consideration: a committee formed ad hoc to deal with the issue.

adjective

concerned or dealing with a specific subject, purpose, or end: The ad hoc committee disbanded after making its final report.

Origin of ad hoc

First recorded in 1550–60, ad hoc is from Latin ad hōc “for this”

Words that may be confused with ad hoc

ad hoc , a posteriori, a priori, ex post facto, prima facie

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ad hoc in a sentence

Congress keeps funding it ad hoc—but when the GOP takes over the Senate next year, who knows.
To GOP Congress, as Usual, It’s Welfare on the Chopping Block | Monica Potts | December 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
An ad hoc network, Bibles, Badges & Business, represents the diversity of the pro-reform lobby.
Even Conservative Evangelical Support Couldn’t Save Immigration Reform | Jacob Lupfer | July 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The ad hoc granular alliances described in Unstoppable promise less but may achieve more.
Citizen Nader Is Still on the Case | Harold Evans | May 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
During the dozen years or so since the R2P concept was formulated, its application has been complicated and ad hoc.
Still a Problem From Hell, Two Decades After Rwanda | John Prendergast | April 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The stones had been pulled up to create ad-hoc fortifications around the Maidan.
My Walk Through Kiev's Maidan Square | Miranda Frum | April 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

Cert ante hoc tempus vix vnquam Gallis vacatum fuit conuertdis incolarum ad Christum animis.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614 | Various
In hoc Isthmo portus regalis est, vbi nunc degimus, ad gradum latitudinis quadragesimum quartum cum besse.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614 | Various
Et reliqua sunt huic cert habitationi ac nostr professioni, hoc est, paupertati 90 csentanea.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614 | Various
Responderunt omnes sibi hoc satis esse, reliqua sese reiecturos.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614 | Various
Paruerunt illi, atq ad nos depositum triduo pst, hoc est semianim detulerunt.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614 | Various

British Dictionary definitions for ad hoc

ad hoc

/ (æd ˈhɒk) /

adjective, adverb

for a particular purpose only; lacking generality or justification: an ad hoc decision; an ad hoc committee

Origin of ad hoc

Latin, literally: to this

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for ad hoc

ad hoc

[ (ad hok, ad hohk) ]

A phrase describing something created especially for a particular occasion: “We need an ad hoc committee to handle this new problem immediately.” From Latin, meaning “toward this (matter).”

Other Idioms and Phrases with ad hoc

ad hoc

For the special purpose or end at hand; also, by extension, improvised or impromptu. The term, Latin for “to this,” is most often used for committees established for a specific purpose, as in The committee was formed ad hoc to address health insurance problems. The term is also used as an adjective (An ad hoc committee was formed), and has given rise to the noun adhocism for the tendency to use temporary, provisional, or improvised methods to deal with a particular problem. [Early 1600s]

Browse