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Synonyms

hooked

American  
[hookt] / hʊkt /

adjective

  1. bent like a hook; hook-shaped.

  2. having a hook or hooks.

  3. made with a hook or by hooking.

  4. Informal.

    1. addicted to narcotic drugs.

    2. slavishly interested in, devoted to, or obsessed with.

      He was hooked on television.

  5. Slang. married.

hooked British  
/ ˈhʊkɪdnɪs, hʊkt /

adjective

  1. bent like a hook

  2. having a hook or hooks

  3. caught or trapped

  4. a slang word for married

  5. slang addicted to a drug

  6. (often foll by on) obsessed (with)

"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

Other Word Forms

  • hookedness noun
  • subhooked adjective

Etymology

Origin of hooked

before 1000; Middle English hoked, Old English hōkede. See hook 1, -ed 2, -ed 3

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.

Investors hooked on monitoring the situation in Iran over the long weekend and trying to read market tea-leaves may have no choice but to take a look at cryptocurrencies that trade 24/7.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Many of our children’s favorite apps and social-media sites were built from the ground up to keep young users hooked and helpless to look away, consequences to their health and well-being be damned.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

Kaley said she first got hooked on YouTube and Instagram in grade school.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026

"It drew the youth because it made you dance and have fun. I was hooked instantly."

From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026

She needed him hooked, needed his eyes to unfocus and for him to accept everything she said as truth.

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

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.