hockey
Americannoun
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Also called (esp US and Canadian): field hockey.
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a game played on a field by two opposing teams of 11 players each, who try to hit a ball into their opponents' goal using long sticks curved at the end
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( as modifier )
hockey stick
hockey ball
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See ice hockey
noun
Etymology
Origin of hockey
1520–30; earlier hockie, perhaps equivalent to hock- hook 1 + -ie -ie
Explanation
Hockey is short for ice hockey or field hockey, but it usually refers to ice hockey, the sport where people skate on ice and use big hockey sticks to whack a puck into a goal. For ice hockey, players wear protective gear and helmets. A flat puck is knocked across the ice with long, paddle-shaped sticks. Field hockey is similar, though there is less contact between players, and a ball, instead of a puck, is smacked with sticks. The origin of hockey is slightly unclear, although it may stem from the Middle French hoquet, "shepherd's staff," which resembles a hockey stick.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
While he was running to be elected prime minister, Carney vowed to solve it with an "elbows up" approach - referencing a combative style of hockey coined by the late Gordie Howe himself.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
To that point, he’d only made smaller contributions, primarily to the club hockey and golf teams.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
However, England Hockey and the Football Foundation have objected to the plans as they think the proposed shared multi-sport artificial grass pitch would not be sufficient for the demand that both hockey and football have.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
WASHINGTON—President Trump imposed an additional 50% tariff on certain goods from Canada, including wine, hockey sticks and cement, the White House announced Monday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
“Colder. I can read your mind. If it’s not one of our hockey players, then maybe...”
From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
