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hooch1

or hootch

[hooch]
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noun Slang.
  1. alcoholic liquor.
  2. liquor illicitly distilled and distributed.
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Origin of hooch1

First recorded in 1895–1900; shortening of hoochinoo

hooch2

or hootch

[hooch]
noun Military Slang.
  1. a thatched hut of southeast Asia.
  2. any living quarters, as a barracks.
  3. (especially during the Korean War)
    1. a prostitute's dwelling.
    2. any place, as a house, room, or shack, where a serviceman sets up housekeeping with a local woman.
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Also hooch·ie [hoo-chee] /ˈhu tʃi/.

Origin of hooch2

1950–55 probably < Japanese uchi house (by back formation, construing -i as -y2); initial h perhaps by association with hut or < Ryukyuan dial. form of uchi with prothetic h-

Hooch

[hooch; Dutch hohkh]
noun
  1. Pie·ter de [pee-ter duh; Dutch pee-tuh r duh] /ˈpi tər də; Dutch ˈpi tər də/, 1629?–88?, Dutch painter.
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Also Hoogh.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for hooch

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • The sound of dancing came from the hall, with cries of "Hooch!"

    The Manxman

    Hall Caine

  • "Let me get a shot of hooch, 'Slim,' and I'll tell ya everything," he whimpered.

    Spring Street

    James H. Richardson

  • Only at intervals and from a distance came the shouting of choruses and the loud "Hooch!"

    Lochinvar

    S. R. Crockett

  • All you need is to git out in the mountains—an' lay off the hooch.'

    Snowdrift

    James B. Hendryx

  • Kitty told me the hooch had got him right—but she didn't tell it strong enough.

    Snowdrift

    James B. Hendryx

British Dictionary definitions for hooch

hooch

hootch

noun
  1. informal, mainly US and Canadian alcoholic drink, esp illicitly distilled spirits
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Word Origin

C20: shortened from Tlingit Hootchinoo, name of a tribe that distilled a type of liquor

Hooch

Hoogh

noun
  1. Pieter de (ˈpiːtər də). 1629–?1684, Dutch genre painter, noted esp for his light effects
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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

Word Origin and History for hooch

n.

also hootch, "cheap whiskey," 1897, shortened form of Hoochinoo (1877) "liquor made by Alaskan Indians," from the name of a native tribe in Alaska whose distilled liquor was a favorite with miners in 1898 Klondike gold rush; the tribe's name is said by OED to be from Tlingit Hutsnuwu, literally "grizzly bear fort."

As the supply of whisky was very limited, and the throats down which it was poured were innumerable, it was found necessary to create some sort of a supply to meet the demand. This concoction was known as "hooch"; and disgusting as it is, it is doubtful if it is much more poisonous than the whisky itself. [M.H.E. Hayne, "The Pioneers of the Klondyke," London, 1897]
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper