hover
Americanverb (used without object)
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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.
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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)
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to cause to hover.
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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
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.
KK Mart’s IPO comes as major global equity markets hover near record highs despite continued uncertainty about the conflict in the Middle East tensions spurring volatility.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026
Michael Jackson’s estate could’ve existed in this gray area forevermore, letting his memory hover somewhere between genius and joker.
From Salon • Apr. 25, 2026
On the Moon, weak gravity allows charged dust to hover above the surface.
From Science Daily • Apr. 23, 2026
Nor do they hover around the main action, loosing barbs of criticism or leering suggestively over their martinis or wistfully reminiscing about the past.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 2026
But now I make Illusion Amari hover in the air just above the plant.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
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.
