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hock

1
[ 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

1
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

2
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

3
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. 2023

Words related to hock

borrow, pledge

How to use hock in a sentence

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
  1. in prison
  2. in debt
  3. 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
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