hoof
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.the hard, tough covering on the feet of animals like horses, cows, or deer.
n.the horny part of the foot of an ungulate animal, consisting of a thick keratinous plate.
Simple“The horse's hooves made a loud clicking sound on the stone road.”
In context“The farrier carefully trimmed the horse's hoof to ensure the animal maintained a balanced gait on uneven terrain.”
Synonymsungula - 02 C1 Advanced
n.a funny or slightly rude way to talk about a person's foot.
n.a derogatory or humorous slang term for the human foot.
Simple“Get your hooves off my new coffee table.”
In context“After a long day of hiking in tight boots, he couldn't wait to rest his aching hooves by the fire.”
Synonymsfoottrotter - 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to walk somewhere, especially if it is a long distance.
v.to travel on foot; to walk a significant distance.
Simple“Our car broke down, so we had to hoof it all the way home.”
In context“With the last bus already gone, the group was forced to hoof it across the city in the pouring rain.”
UsageOften used in the phrase 'hoof it'.
- 04 C1 Advanced
v.to kick a ball very hard and far without much aim.
v.to kick a ball, particularly in football, with great force and little precision.
Simple“The defender just hoofed the ball down the field to clear the danger.”
In context“Under intense pressure from the strikers, the goalkeeper opted to hoof the ball toward the halfway line rather than risk a short pass.”
- 05 C2 Proficiency
v.to dance, especially if you do it as a job.
v.to perform a dance, particularly in a professional or theatrical context.
Simple“She spent years hoofing in small theaters before making it to Broadway.”
In context“The veteran performer had been hoofing on the vaudeville circuit for decades before finally retiring from the stage.”
“They live in pack families , relying on each other to hunt hoofed mammals many times their size.”
From Middle English hoof, hof, from Old English hōf, from Proto-Germanic hōfaz (compare West Frisian hoef, Dutch hoef, German Huf, Danish hov, Norwegian hov, Swedish hov), from Proto-Indo-European ḱoph₂ós (compare Sanskrit शफ (śaphá, “hoof, claw”), Avestan 𐬯𐬀𐬟𐬀 (safa, “hoof”), possibly Czech, Polish kopyto).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.