Word
hockey
Phoneticshock·ey
US/ˈhɑki/
UK/hˈɒki/
Definitions
01field hockey
n. a game played on grass or a hard surface where two teams use curved sticks to hit a small ball into a goal.
n. a team sport played on a pitch with a hard ball and sticks with a hooked head. Uncountable; the default referent for 'hockey' in the UK, Australia, and India.
“The school team practiced hockey on the grass field every Tuesday afternoon.”
“The national team secured a victory in the hockey finals, demonstrating superior stick-handling skills on the synthetic turf.”
British English
Usage
In British English, 'hockey' used alone almost always refers to the field-based game.
Teaching tip
Remind students that in the UK and Australia, you must specify 'ice hockey' if you mean the game on skates.
Synonyms
02ice hockey
n. a fast game played on ice where players wear skates and use sticks to hit a flat disc called a puck into a net.
n. a contact team sport played on an ice rink with skates and a vulcanized rubber puck. Uncountable; the default referent for 'hockey' in Canada and the United States.
“He put on his skates and helmet before the hockey game started.”
“The crowd cheered as the hockey captain slapped the puck into the net during the final seconds of the third period.”
American English
Usage
In North American English, 'hockey' used alone refers to the ice-based game.
Teaching tip
In Canada and the US, field hockey is often considered a niche or school-based sport, whereas 'hockey' is a major professional cultural staple.
Synonyms
03feces
n. a very informal and rude word for solid waste from the body.
n. a slang term for excrement or feces. Uncountable; highly informal and potentially offensive in certain social contexts.
“Watch your step so you don't walk in the dog hockey on the grass.”
“The hiker complained about the amount of horse hockey left along the shared trail.”
American English · Slang · Informal
Usage
Often used in the euphemistic compound 'horse hockey' to mean nonsense.
Teaching tip
This sense is relatively rare compared to the sport; students should be aware of it to avoid confusion in very casual American speech.
Etymology
16th century, of unknown origin. Possibly related to hook due to the curvature of the stick, akin to hock (“hook”) + -ey, or from Middle French hoquet (“shepherd's staff, crook”), which resembles a hockey stick, via a diminutive form of Old French hoc from Middle Dutch hoec (“hook”), a cognate of Old English hōc.
See oche.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Collocations
Related words
Idioms
tonsil hockey — Synonym of French kissing: the act or practice of kissing involving the tongue.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/hockey