hock

[ hok ]

/ hɒk /

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noun

the joint in the hind leg of a horse, cow, etc., above the fetlock joint, corresponding anatomically to the ankle in humans.

a corresponding joint in a fowl.

verb (used with object)

to hamstring.

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Origin of hock

First recorded in 1375–1425; variant of dialect hough, from Middle English hough, houh, houe “heel,” from Old English hōh “heel, hough, promontory”; see also heel¹, Kew

Other definitions for hock (2 of 3)

hock²

[ hok ]

/ hɒk /

noun Chiefly British.

any white Rhine wine.

Origin of hock

First recorded in 1615–25; short for HockamoreHochheimer

Other definitions for hock (3 of 3)

hock³

[ hok ]

/ hɒk /

verb (used with object)

pawn¹ (def. 1).

noun

the state of being deposited or held as security; pawn: She was forced to put her good jewelry in hock.

the condition of owing; debt: After the loan was paid, he was finally out of hock.

Origin of hock

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60; from Dutch hok “kennel, sty, pen, (informal) miserable place to live, prison”

OTHER WORDS FROM hock

hocker, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use hock in a sentence

Voices like Nina Simone’s might be ringing through her halls while greens and ham hock slowly simmer in a large pot.
This Revolutionary Chef Wants to Topple the Table|Shaan Merchant|January 30, 2021|Ozy
Accusations that Democrats are doing the bidding of China, and may literally be in hock to it, have transferred from the campaign to the transition period, with a good chance of shaping politics over the next year.
The Trailer: Why the GOP is talking about China, from Georgia to the courtroom|David Weigel|December 10, 2020|Washington Post
Schools closed, the deficit ballooned, highways crumbled, jobs disappeared—I imagine ruby slippers were hocked.
Will the GOP Get the Message in Kansas?|Ana Marie Cox|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Tester uses the word "cool" as often as a tween, and I lost count of all the loogies he hocked in my presence.
Senator Jon Tester: The Democrats' Last Best Hope|Andrew Romano|May 8, 2011|DAILY BEAST

The comedienne even finished it off with a hocked loogie and a groin grab.
15 Best and Worst Celebrity National Anthem Performances|The Daily Beast Video|July 1, 2009|DAILY BEAST
The old soldier ambled up the village street, all shadowy in the dawn, on a gaunt, scissor-hocked pony.
Kim|Rudyard Kipling
Thirty cents, and my last collateral security hocked and the ticket lost!
Tin-Types Taken in the Streets of New York|Lemuel Ely Quigg
I've hocked ev'ryt'ing dat would bring in a dollar, an' dis is de las' t'ing I've got.
Bowery Life|Chuck Connors
Cow-hocked, clumsy about the ankles; with large or awkward feet.
The Slang Dictionary|John Camden Hotten
"All the same I had a very good mare once that was sickle-hocked," she said.
Dodo Wonders|E. F. Benson

British Dictionary definitions for hock (1 of 3)

hock¹

/ (hɒk) /

noun

the joint at the tarsus of a horse or similar animal, pointing backwards and corresponding to the human ankle

the corresponding joint in domestic fowl

verb

another word for hamstring

Word Origin for hock

C16: short for hockshin, from Old English hōhsinu heel sinew

British Dictionary definitions for hock (2 of 3)

hock²

/ (hɒk) /

noun

any of several white wines from the German Rhine

(not in technical usage) any dry white wine

Word Origin for hock

C17: short for obsolete hockamore Hochheimer

British Dictionary definitions for hock (3 of 3)

hock³

/ (hɒk) informal, mainly US and Canadian /

verb

(tr) to pawn or pledge

noun

the state of being in pawn (esp in the phrase in hock)

in hock

in prison
in debt
in pawn

Derived forms of hock

hocker, noun

Word Origin for hock

C19: from Dutch hok prison, debt

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

hock

Origin of hock

Other definitions for hock (2 of 3)

Origin of hock

Other definitions for hock (3 of 3)

Origin of hock

OTHER WORDS FROM hock

Words related to hock

How to use hock in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hock (1 of 3)

Word Origin for hock

British Dictionary definitions for hock (2 of 3)

Word Origin for hock

British Dictionary definitions for hock (3 of 3)

Derived forms of hock

Word Origin for hock