hoof
[ hoo f, hoof ]
/ hʊf, huf /
noun, plural hoofs or hooves for 1, 2, 4; hoof for 3.
the horny covering protecting the ends of the digits or encasing the foot in certain animals, as the ox and horse.
the entire foot of a horse, donkey, etc.
Older Use.
a hoofed animal, especially one of a herd.
Informal.
the human foot.
verb (used with object)
Slang.
to walk (often followed by it): Let's hoof it to the supermarket.
verb (used without object)
Slang.
to dance, especially to tap-dance: He's been hoofing at the Palladium.
Idioms for hoof plural hoof.
on the hoof,
(of livestock) not butchered; live: The city youngsters were seeing lambs on the hoof for the first time.
Origin of hoof
before 1000; Middle English (noun); Old English
hōf; cognate with Old Frisian
hōf, Dutch
hoef, German
Huf, Old Norse
hōfr; compare Sanskrit
śaphas
OTHER WORDS FROM hoof
hoof·i·ness, noun hoof·less, adjective hoof·like, adjectiveWords nearby hoof
hoodman-blind,
hoodoo,
hoodooism,
hoodwink,
hooey,
hoof,
hoof it,
hoof-and-mouth disease,
hoofbeat,
hoofbound,
hoofed
Example sentences from the Web for hoof
British Dictionary definitions for hoof
hoof
/ (huːf) /
noun plural hooves (huːvz) or hoofs
verb
(tr)
to kick or trample with the hoofs
hoof it slang
- to walk
- to dance
Derived forms of hoof
hoofless, adjective hooflike, adjectiveWord Origin for hoof
Old English
hōf; related to Old Norse
hōfr, Old High German
huof (German
Huf), Sanskrit
saphás