any of several kinds of long-handled hand implement equipped with a light blade and used to till the soil, eradicate weeds, etc
to dig, scrape, weed, or till (surface soil) with or as if with a hoe
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
hoe /hoʊ/USA pronunciation
n., v., hoed, hoe•ing.
n. [countable]
v.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026n. [countable]
- Agriculturea long-handled tool with a flat, square blade, used esp. in breaking up soil and in weeding.
v.
- Agricultureto use a hoe: [~ + object]hoeing the garden.[no object]out in the garden hoeing.
hoe
(hō),USA pronunciation n., v., hoed, hoe•ing.
n.
v.t.
v.i.
ho′er, n.
hoe′like′, adj.
Hoe (hō),USA pronunciation n.
n.
- Agriculturea long-handled implement having a thin, flat blade usually set transversely, used to break up the surface of the ground, destroy weeds, etc.
- any of various implements of similar form, as for mixing plaster or mortar.
v.t.
- Agricultureto dig, scrape, weed, cultivate, etc., with a hoe.
v.i.
- Agricultureto use a hoe.
- Gmc; compare Middle Dutch houwe, Old High German houwa mattock; akin to hew
- Old French houe
- Middle English howe 1325–75
hoe′like′, adj.
Hoe (hō),USA pronunciation n.
- Biographical Richard, 1812–86, U.S. inventor and manufacturer of printing-press equipment.
- Biographicalhis father, Robert, 1784–1833, U.S. manufacturer of printing presses.
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'hoe' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):