hover
Americanverb (used without object)
-
hovers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hovered,
past participle, past
-
hovering
present participle
-
to hang fluttering or suspended in the air.
The helicopter hovered over the building.
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to keep lingering about; wait near at hand.
-
to remain in an uncertain or irresolute state; waver.
to hover between life and death.
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Computers. to place a pointer over an area of a screen without clicking or tapping, as with a mouse or stylus.
Hover over the icon to reveal more information.
verb (used with object)
-
hovers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hovered,
past participle, past
-
hovering
present participle
-
to cause to hover.
-
Computers. to place (a pointer) over an area of a screen without clicking or tapping.
noun
verb
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(intr) to remain suspended in one place
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(intr) (of certain birds, esp hawks) to remain in one place in the air by rapidly beating the wings
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(intr) to linger uncertainly in a nervous or solicitous way
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(intr) to be in a state of indecision
she was hovering between the two suitors
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(tr) computing to hold (the mouse pointer) over a defined area on a web page without clicking, in order to cause a menu, information box, etc to appear
noun
Synonym Usage
See fly 2 .
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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hoversimple
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hoverssimple
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have hoveredperfect
-
has hoveredperfect
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am hoveringprogressive
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are hoveringprogressive
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is hoveringprogressive
-
have been hoveringperfect progressive
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has been hoveringperfect progressive
Past
-
hoveredsimple
-
had hoveredperfect
-
was hoveringprogressive
-
were hoveringprogressive
-
had been hoveringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hover
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English hoveren, frequentative of hoven “to hover,” of obscure origin
Explanation
A hover craft flies low over the ground or water — it hovers. Hover can also mean waver. Think of someone that can’t decide exactly where to land. To help remember the meaning of hover, think of it as containing the preposition over: things that hover hang over. A temperature can hover around forty degrees, a grade in a class can hover around a B.
Vocabulary lists containing hover
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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"Of Mice and Men"
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"The Great Gatsby," Chapter 1 Vocabulary
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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:
Beyond any ground speeds, Musk has even suggested the Roadster might hover or fly by using technology from his rocket company SpaceX.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
On top of that, your level of trust in anything created by Mark Zuckerberg should constantly hover in the 0-to-4 range out of 10.
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
For Deetz, he said he’d often say that he wouldn’t hover low for extended periods of time, especially if he didn’t see a place he could land in case of an emergency.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
Overall sales of new cars have shrunk in recent years with about a million buyers opting out—and car owners keeping their old vehicles for longer than ever—as average prices hover around $50,000.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
“I sure do want to ride one of those hover ladders,” said a girl who sounded like she might be from Alabama or Louisiana.
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
While the steps helped stem the rupee's losses, the currency has faced fresh challenges as foreign investors continue to dump Indian equities and crude hovers around $100 a barrel.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Voter turnout in the U.S. hovers around 60 percent in presidential elections and closer to 40 percent in midterms.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026
While the company has recovered some ground this century, particularly with its luxury brands Audi and Porsche, its group market share in North America hovers around 4%, far below its dominant position in other markets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
The average student-loan balance in the U.S. hovers at around $38,000, so your gift will be able to help with a significant chunk of that.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
They lower it remotely and lift Len on as it hovers a meter off the ground.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
However, the unheated pool in Staten Island instead felt bone-chilling in the early May temperatures, which hovered at a low 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
EV sales peaked around 12% of the new-car market in the third quarter of 2025 before the tax credits went away, and have hovered around 6% this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
Now a project manager in a housing association and living in Worcester, she earns £72,000 and says her student loan balance has hovered at about £47,000 for a number of years.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
Ten-year yields edged down 0.6 basis points to 5.236%, while 30-year yields hovered around 5.620%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
My finger hovered over that one for a second, until I spotted one more in the top right corner.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
Thirty-year and 10-year Treasurys both strengthened but yields still remained close to multidecade highs, with 10-year yields hovering around 5.290% after touching a fresh 24-year high in the last session.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
If you’ve been peering through the steamed up windows of the Amicus Plus smokeless cigar bar longingly, hovering over that “subscribe to Slate Plus” button.
From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026
Diesel prices in the UK hit a record high this week and are hovering at just under 200p a litre, according to motoring organisation the RAC.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art’s central plaza, which spreads out beneath the building’s curved, hovering form, was always meant to be a generous civic space.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
He was about to turn on the motor when he saw a swirl of white hovering where the river should be.
From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat
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.
