hunch

American  

[huhnch] / hʌntʃ /

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.

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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 British  

/ hʌntʃ /

noun

1. an intuitive guess or feeling

2. another word for hump

3. a lump or large piece

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verb

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

2. to sit in a hunched position

Etymology

Origin of hunch

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

Explanation

When you pose for pictures with short friends, you hunch over so you don't tower above them — you scrunch up your shoulders, bend your knees, and try to look smaller. You can also have a hunch, which has nothing to do with scrunching. When you have a hunch about something, you think it might be true. Your dog bolts over the fence, and you have a hunch he's heading for the neighbor who feeds him pâté. Hunch is an odd word of unknown origin, which seems to have originally meant "to push or shove" — to nudge.

Example Sentences

The figures here all look a little awkward, with a slight hunch in their backless chair and their shoulders set at a forced angle.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Roberts admits that the “magic number” of $1.46 million is more of a hunch or perception of what people think they’ll need, rather than an official financial calculation.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

And so the striker's hunch proved correct - he did have a role to play.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

Standing in a line, they fall into syncopated steps, slowly coming together for a single breath and hunch.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

“Well, let’s just say that I have a hunch you two will get along. That and you’re pretty much the only boy on the team I trust to help my dead friend’s son.”

From "Boy21" by Matthew Quick

Related Words

• inkling
• instinct
• intuition
• premonition