hunch

[huhnch]

verb (used with object)

1. to thrust out or up in a hump; arch.

   to hunch one's back.

2. to shove, push, or jostle.

verb (used without object)

1. to thrust oneself forward jerkily; lunge forward.

2. to stand, sit, or walk in a bent posture.

noun

1. a premonition or suspicion; guess.

   I have a hunch he'll run for reelection.

   Synonyms: conjecture, theory, feeling, surmise

2. a hump.

3. a push or shove.

4. a lump or thick piece.

hunch

/ hʌntʃ /

noun

1. an intuitive guess or feeling

2. another word for hump

3. a lump or large piece

verb

1. to bend or draw (oneself or a part of the body) up or together

2. to sit in a hunched position

Word History and Origins

Origin of hunch¹

1590–1600; 1900–05 hunch for def. 5; apparently variant of obsolete hinch to push, shove, kick < ?

Word History and Origins

Origin of hunch¹

C16: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

And Fuller’s hunch proved correct — at least in the eyes of Mandy Matney, the journalist whose podcast provided source material for the series and who was an executive producer on it.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He stayed hunched against the wall and spoke in a muffled voice.

Read more on Literature

McLean, a 32-year-old data analyst in Chicago, was monitoring his wife’s scheduled United flight to New York on a hunch it would be waylaid by the shutdown and a coming snowstorm.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Hanging up, he pinged Bank of America, on a hunch, to see if they would sell him more.

Read more on Literature

After serving out the next game to love - and hitting an ace on the final point - Sabalenka hunched over next to her coach, hid her face in a towel, and cried.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• inkling 
• instinct 
• intuition 
• premonition