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Synonyms

play hooky

Idioms  
  1. Be absent from school or some other obligation without permission, as in It was such a beautiful day that Herb played hooky from work. In this term, the noun hooky may have come from the phrase hook it, meaning “escape.” [Mid-1800s]


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:

If you can play hooky on a weekday, then do so, because this hike is popular.

From Seattle Times Mar. 29, 2022

The Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce is asking business owners to let their employees "play hooky" from work and step in as substitute teachers.

From Fox News Feb. 7, 2022

We take a weekday in early December, play hooky from our respective jobs, and take a leisurely approach to loading up on gifts.

From Slate Dec. 15, 2015

Snow had closed Leo and Grady’s school both Monday and Tuesday, so they hadn’t gotten to play hooky after all.

From New York Times Mar. 11, 2014

Kids got sick, like Dad said, or they decided to play hooky.

From "Among the Hidden" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

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