hockey

American  

[hok-ee] / ˈhɒk i /

noun

1. ice hockey.

2. field hockey.

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hockey ¹ British  

/ ˈhɒkɪ /

noun

1. Also called (esp US and Canadian): field hockey. 

   1. 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

   2. ( as modifier )

      hockey stick

      hockey ball

2. See ice hockey

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hockey ² British  

/ ˈhɒkɪ /

noun

1. Also: hawkey.   horkey.  dialect

   1. the feast at harvest home; harvest supper

   2. ( as modifier )

      the hockey cart

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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

See Examples For:

hockey

He was a keen athlete who loved tennis and hockey.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

He also posted a caricature of him and Carney playing hockey in which Trump tells him: “Get up, Governor.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

The US tariffs hit items like hockey sticks and cement, impacting about 5.5 percent of Canadian exports to the United States.

From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026

Many of the special things Canadians cherish, we can also count as our own, from maple trees in Vermont to gold medals in Olympic hockey, from Alexander Graham Bell to Catherine O’Hara.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

She hires Daniel and his hockey team to move furniture.

From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen