hood
noun
a soft or flexible covering for the head and neck, either separate or attached to a cloak, coat, or the like.
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hood
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'hood
'hoodnouna neighborhood, especially an urban neighborhood inhabited predominantly by African Americans of low socioeconomic status.
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Hood
HoodnounJohn Bell, 1831–79, Confederate general in the U.S. Civil War.
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-hood
-hooda native English suffix denoting state, condition, character, nature, etc., or a body of persons of a particular character or class, formerly used in the formation of nouns: childhood; likelihood; knighthood; priesthood .
hood
1 American
[hood]
/ hʊd /
noun
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a soft or flexible covering for the head and neck, either separate or attached to a cloak, coat, or the like.
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something resembling or suggesting such a covering, especially in shape, as certain petals or sepals.
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the hinged, movable part of an automobile body covering the engine.
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British. the roof of a carriage.
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a metal cover or canopy for a stove, ventilator, etc.
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Falconry. a cover for the entire head of a hawk, used when the bird is not in pursuit of game.
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an ornamental ruffle or fold on the back of the shoulders of an academic gown, jurist's robe, etc.
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a crest or band of color on the head of certain birds and animals.
verb (used with object)
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hoods,
present (3rd person singular)
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hooded,
past participle, past
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hooding
present participle
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to furnish with a hood.
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to cover with or as if with a hood.
hood
2
American
[hood, hood]
/ hʊd, hud /
noun
Slang.
'hood
3
American
[hood]
/ hʊd /
Or
hood
noun
Slang.
Hood
4
American
[hood]
/ hʊd /
noun
-
John Bell, 1831–79, Confederate general in the U.S. Civil War.
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Raymond Mathewson 1881–1934, U.S. architect.
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Robin. Robin Hood.
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Thomas, 1799–1845, English poet and humorist.
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Mount, a volcanic peak in N Oregon, in the Cascade Range. 11,253 feet (3,430 meters).
-hood
5
American
hood
1
British
/ hʊd /
noun
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a loose head covering either attached to a cloak or coat or made as a separate garment
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something resembling this in shape or use
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the US and Canadian name for bonnet
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the folding roof of a convertible car
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a hoodlike garment worn over an academic gown, indicating its wearer's degree and university
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falconry a close-fitting cover, placed over the head and eyes of a falcon to keep it quiet when not hunting
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biology a structure or marking, such as the fold of skin on the head of a cobra, that covers or appears to cover the head or some similar part
verb
Hood
2
British
/ hʊd /
noun
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See Robin Hood
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Samuel, 1st Viscount. 1724–1816, British admiral. He fought successfully against the French during the American Revolution and the French Revolutionary Wars
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Thomas. 1799–1845, British poet and humorist: his work includes protest poetry, such as The Song of the Shirt (1843) and The Bridge of Sighs (1844)
-hood
3
British
suffix
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indicating state or condition of being
manhood
adulthood
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indicating a body of persons
knighthood
priesthood
'hood
4
British
/ hʊd /
noun
hood
5
British
/ hʊd /
noun
Usage
What does -hood mean? The suffix -hood is used to indicate “a state of being” or "a group of a particular characteristic or class." It is often used in a variety of technical and everyday terms. The form -hood comes from Old English hād, meaning “condition” or “rank.” Similar suffixes in Latin include -itās and -tūdō, both of which indicate a state of being and are the sources of the English suffixes -ity and -tude. Check out our entries for both suffixes to learn how frequently they appear.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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hoodsimple
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hoodssimple
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have hoodedperfect
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has hoodedperfect
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am hoodingprogressive
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are hoodingprogressive
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is hoodingprogressive
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have been hoodingperfect progressive
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has been hoodingperfect progressive
Past
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hoodedsimple
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had hoodedperfect
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was hoodingprogressive
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were hoodingprogressive
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had been hoodingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hood1
First recorded before 900, in 1925–30 hood 1 for def. 3 (an Americanism); Middle English hode, Old English hōd; cognate with Old Frisian hōde, Dutch hoed, German Hut hat
Origin of hood2
First recorded in 1925–30; by shortening
Origin of 'hood3
First recorded in 1965–70; African American Vernacular English; by shortening
Origin of -hood5
Middle English -hode, -hod, Old English -hād (cognate with German -heit ), special use of hād condition, state, order, quality, rank
Explanation
A hood is a protective covering. It could be a car hood protecting the engine or your car or it could be the hood on your coat protecting your noggin. Your favorite sweatshirt might have a hood, as well as your fur-lined winter coat and your insulated hood for scuba diving. Other things with a similar protective quality are also called hoods, like the metal vent cover over your stove, the cover on your car's engine, and the cap-like plant sections that cover vulnerable parts. One of the most famous hoods in literature is the red one worn by the main character in "Little Red Riding Hood."
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.
See Examples For:
A white BMW also appears in the footage with dents in the hood of the car.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
“It’ll be slick as a car hood from the slime on their bellies,” Walters says.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Inscribed “The Moost Happi,” it shows Anne with a gable hood and an unmonogrammed necklace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
Goldthorpe attended LIV's most recent event in Bedminster, New York, and O'Neil said he was spending time "looking under the hood" of the league.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
I nod from the closed tunnel of my parka hood and pull my team over to rest.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
As an actor, writer and director, he became a powerful figure in the British film industry for making movies including the 'hood series - Kidulthood, Adulthood and Brotherhood.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2025
And World on Wheels, at that time, was in the ’hood so they weren’t necessarily skating during the regular skating hours.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2025
“I’m not even in the ghetto. I’m not in the ‘hood.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 27, 2023
"They Cloned Tyrone," directed and co-written by Juel Taylor, is a futuristic 'hood mystery based around a white and white-adjacent corporate agenda to control the Black community through fried chicken, drugs and perms.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2023
I try to keep to myself when there's hoopla, but some of them know it's my 'hood, so they're coming by to find out my opinion.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
Marketing materials and the film’s notes for journalists announce that this is a Robin Hood origin story, which is curious in several ways.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
“We still had quite a bit of beach out there then, so it didn’t reach the boardwalk,” said Hood, 70.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
Almost 100 municipalities in the U.S. have ended their Flock contracts in response to public outcry, including several in Texas, such as Bandera and Hood County.
From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026
The U.S. military has grounded its Apache helicopters after two soldiers were killed near Fort Hood, Texas.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
“You know that doesn’t hurt, right?” the Hood asked.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
When joined together, the h- of the -hood is put in immediate apposition with the s of the monks-.
From A Handbook of the English Language by R. G. (Robert Gordon) Latham
A resident told UK media she had alerted emergency services after seeing three vans blocking a road near the village and a group of men wearing hoods and balaclavas.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
Israeli activists who support Palestinians shared videos showing various degrees of harassment by Hilltop Youth: standing uncomfortably close to Palestinians, staring, spitting, stopping cars and sitting on the hoods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
The thin aluminum sheets produced at the plant are later stamped into fenders, hoods and other exterior vehicle parts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026
She looked through the pinhole and saw two men wearing hoods.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026
They wore cloaks of a soft gray with hoods that framed their faces in shadow.
From "Breadcrumbs" by Anne Ursu
Surrounded by hooded police officers, Claudia Pardo, head of communications for the prosecutor's office, denounced the raid as "illegal."
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
The group also says that in January 2020 more than 2,000 hooded vultures were found dead in Guinea-Bissau, many with their heads removed - a sign of belief-based practices rather than natural causes, researchers say.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
His press conferences are almost theatrically placid, Brunson often slouched in a hat and/or hooded sweatshirt and deflecting any effort to valorize his success.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
On a chilly spring night, Caligiuri, wearing a hooded Adidas jacket and black sweatpants, stands in the center of a small soccer field on a bluff in Mission Viejo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2026
His chain-mail shirt beneath the armor was more of a long, hooded tunic.
From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
Their accounts echo those of the Negra Francisca crew: cuffing and hooding by armed English-speakers before being turned over to a Salvadoran patrol craft, which took them to El Salvador.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
The upper tends to address hooding and volume loss of the eyelid, while the lower focuses on puffiness and dark circles or hollowing under the eye, says Dr. Flora Levin, a Connecticut-based oculoplastic surgeon.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
She attended a Baptist pastor’s hooding ceremony, a public event for a Japanese sister city, and a luau held by a local nonprofit’s C.E.O.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 12, 2019
I decided to order the cessation of all hooding as it had become particularly emotive in light of the death of Baha Mousa.
From BBC ● May 18, 2010
At her glance the overseer blinked quickly, then composed himself, his lids hooding his little dark eyes, his rosebud mouth tightening to a slit.
From "Lyddie" by Katherine Paterson
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.
