hooligan
Americannoun
adjective
noun
Usage
What does hooligan mean? A hooligan is a person who intentionally makes trouble or breaks the law with rowdy, unruly behavior, especially with other hooligans.Hooligan is synonymous with ruffian and hoodlum, but all three words can sound a little too outdated to capture the seriousness of the trouble that such people can cause.Specifically, the term hooligan is applied to members of groups who use sporting events, especially soccer (football) games, as an opportunity to intentionally cause trouble or incite violence. The practice of doing so is called hooliganism.The term is most often used in the plural because it almost always implies that there is a group of troublemakers—it is somewhat uncommon to refer to someone acting alone as a hooligan.Example: The latest match was canceled after hooligans started a brawl outside the stadium.
Other Word Forms
- hooliganism noun
Etymology
Origin of hooligan
First recorded in 1895–1900; perhaps after the Irish surname Hooligan, but corroborating evidence is lacking
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.
Mr O'Grady said Connolly "wasn't some lager-fuelled hooligan on the streets" and pointed to her being a mother of a 12-year-old daughter, who had also lost a son when he was just 19 months old.
From BBC
She's also deeply disturbed by what she calls Simion's "hooligan" behaviour.
From BBC
She believes the beluga was being trained to guard the base and fled because it was a "hooligan".
From BBC
Back in 1999, one hereditary Tory peer, the Earl of Onslow, said he would behave like a “football hooligan” in opposing New Labour’s abolition plan.
From BBC
She said "hooligans and thugs" involved in disorder across the country should "hang their heads in shame" for attempting to connect their actions to the events of 29 July.
From BBC
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.
