hock

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈhɒk/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/hɑk/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(hok)


WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
hock1 /hɑk/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. Zoologythe joint in the hind leg of a horse, cow, etc., corresponding to the ankle in humans.

hock3 /hɑk/USA pronunciation   v. [+ object]
  1. to pawn:He had hocked his wife's jewelry to raise money to gamble.

n. [uncountable]
  1. the state of being deposited or held as security;
    pawn:the jewelry was in hock.
  2. the condition of owing;
    debt:in hock to the amount of thirty thousand dollars.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
hock1  (hok),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Zoologythe joint in the hind leg of a horse, cow, etc., above the fetlock joint, corresponding anatomically to the ankle in humans. See diag. under horse. 
  2. Zoologya corresponding joint in a fowl.

v.t. 
  1. Pathologyto hamstring.
  • 1375–1425; variant of dialect, dialectal hough, Middle English ho(u)gh, apparently back formation from late Middle English hokschyn, etc., Old English hōhsinu hock (literally, heel) sinew; see heel1

hock2  (hok),USA pronunciation n. [Chiefly Brit.]
  1. British Termsany white Rhine wine.
  • short for Hockamore Hochheimer 1615–25

hock3  (hok),USA pronunciation v.t. 
  1. pawn.

n. 
  1. the state of being deposited or held as security;
    pawn:She was forced to put her good jewelry in hock.
  2. the condition of owing;
    debt:After the loan was paid, he was finally out of hock.
  • Dutch hok kennel, sty, pen, (informal) miserable place to live, prison
  • 1855–60, American.
hocker, n. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
hock / hɒk/
  1. the joint at the tarsus of a horse or similar animal, pointing backwards and corresponding to the human ankle
  1. another word for hamstring
Etymology: 16th Century: short for hockshin, from Old English hōhsinu heel sinew
hock / hɒk/
  1. any of several white wines from the German Rhine
Etymology: 17th Century: short for obsolete hockamore Hochheimer
hock / hɒk/
  1. (transitive) to pawn or pledge
  1. the state of being in pawn (esp in the phrase in hock)
  2. in hock in prison
  3. in debt
  4. in pawn
Etymology: 19th Century: from Dutch hok prison, debt
'hock' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Synonyms: pawn, more...

Forum discussions with the word(s) "hock" in the title:


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