hoop
Americannoun
-
hoops
plural
-
a circular band or ring of metal, wood, or other stiff material.
-
such a band for holding together the staves of a cask, tub, etc.
-
a large ring of iron, wood, plastic, etc., used as a plaything for a child to roll along the ground.
-
a circular or ringlike object, part, figure, etc.
-
Jewelry. the shank of a finger ring.
-
Croquet. a wicket.
-
a circular band of stiff material used to expand and display a woman's skirt.
-
Basketball Informal.
-
the metal ring from which the net is suspended; rim.
-
the metal ring and net taken together; the basket.
-
the game of basketball.
-
-
a decorative band, as around a mug or cup.
verb (used with object)
-
hoops,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hooped,
past participle, past
-
hooping
present participle
-
to bind or fasten with or as if with a hoop or hoops.
-
to encircle; surround.
noun
-
a rigid circular band of metal or wood
-
something resembling this
-
-
a band of iron that holds the staves of a barrel or cask together
-
( as modifier )
hoop iron
-
-
a child's toy shaped like a hoop and rolled on the ground or whirled around the body
-
croquet any of the iron arches through which the ball is driven
-
-
a light curved frame to spread out a skirt
-
( as modifier )
a hoop skirt
a hoop petticoat
-
-
basketball the round metal frame to which the net is attached to form the basket
-
a large ring through which performers or animals jump
-
jewellery
-
an earring consisting of one or more circles of metal, plastic, etc
-
the part of a finger ring through which the finger fits
-
-
informal a jockey
-
to be subjected to an ordeal
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
hoopsimple
-
hoopssimple
-
have hoopedperfect
-
has hoopedperfect
-
am hoopingprogressive
-
are hoopingprogressive
-
is hoopingprogressive
-
have been hoopingperfect progressive
-
has been hoopingperfect progressive
Past
-
hoopedsimple
-
had hoopedperfect
-
was hoopingprogressive
-
were hoopingprogressive
-
had been hoopingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hoop
1125–75; Middle English hope, hoop, late Old English hōp; cognate with Dutch hoep
Explanation
A hoop is a ring or circle made of some stiff material. Gardeners use hoops to support plants, and many people wear hoops around their wrists as bracelets. You can try to toss a basketball through a hoop, wear gold hoops as earrings, or sport an old fashioned hoop skirt, a flexible band that widens a petticoat and the skirt covering it. You can also rotate and spin a hula hoop around your body for fun. If your boss makes you "jump through hoops" at work, it means she requires you to complete difficult, possibly unnecessary, tasks.
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:
It was run by a man in his early 40s with a single gold hoop and a tight gray bun.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026
He said he never paid his fine — he doesn’t remember how much it was — but he eventually pulled the hoop down.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
She reminisced about date nights spent on ferris wheels, and dreamt of raising kids in a house with "a driveway with a basketball hoop".
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Hilton then revealed there is even a basketball hoop inside the “doggy mansion,” as her son joined his sister in claiming the home for his own, stating: “This is my house, too.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 24, 2026
Mr. Jeet held an embroidery hoop one inch off the floor.
From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser
One instance of enforcement occurred in 2006, when a former city council field deputy reported her Sherman Oaks neighbors for having basketball hoops near their curbs, according to the Los Angeles Daily News.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
The change removes some administrative hoops, said Frank Bisignano, CEO at the IRS.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
"An opt-out scheme just reverses that default and makes us go through hoops to preserve it."
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Every voter needs to accept responsibility for ensuring they are registered, and must jump through whatever hoops are necessary in order to cast a vote in November.
From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026
But I’ll always remember the first time he took me out to shoot hoops.
From "The Million Dollar Shot" by Dan Gutman
At the dojo on a recent Tuesday, Blanck hooped and hollered as Eden climbed a rope to the ceiling.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 3, 2025
As models strode around a living room, one stood atop the coffee table that, in an eye-popping moment of industrial design, transformed into a wooden hooped skirt when she lifted it up.
From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2024
They explored the extensive grounds, hula hooped on the lawn, and played volleyball.
From New York Times ● Aug. 13, 2021
I gave my nephew some original Space Jams, and this fool went out and hooped in them and they crumbled.
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2021
Mitsima rolled out another piece of clay into a long flexible cylinder, hooped it into a circle and pressed it on to the rim of the cup.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
In the next over, he got through Duckett's flashing drive with a hooping in-swinger and, in the the next, pinned an unbalanced Root leg before.
From BBC ● Jan. 27, 2024
He reveals that he sprained it while hula hooping and he even shows photos.
From Salon ● Dec. 14, 2023
“He’s a great competitor. I like going against him. And he was hooping tonight for sure. He shot the ball exceptionally well and kept them in the game,” James said.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 20, 2023
Teenagers tried out hip-hop, Thai boxing and hula hooping at public classes in a shopping center.
From New York Times ● Sep. 26, 2023
And I remember how I got really good at hooping last summer.
From "Zara’s Rules for Record-Breaking Fun" by Hena Khan
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.
