hocked; hocking
US, informal
: to forcefully spit out (something, such as phlegm)
hock a loogie
hock a wad of tobacco
Examples of hock in a Sentence
Verb (1)
the prince had to hock the family jewels to pay his gambling debts
Recent Examples on the Web
Sergei Klebnikov, Forbes.com, 19 Apr. 2026
The page gave a deep snort, hocking a chartreuse wad against the root of the nightingale’s birch.
—Hazlitt, 19 Nov. 2025
Shein is far from the first online retailer to run into trouble with third-party vendors hocking controversial wares or flouting policy standards.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
Conversely, Soto was like the guy who hocks his wedding ring before the separation agreement is signed.
—Greg Marotta, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hock
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Verb
One borrower who manages a large hedge fund hocked his wife’s eight-carat diamond ring—worth upwards of $600,000—after receiving a large margin call (the loan was eventually repaid and the ring was returned.
—Sergei Klebnikov, Forbes.com, 19 Apr. 2026
The page gave a deep snort, hocking a chartreuse wad against the root of the nightingale’s birch.
—Hazlitt, 19 Nov. 2025
Shein is far from the first online retailer to run into trouble with third-party vendors hocking controversial wares or flouting policy standards.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
Conversely, Soto was like the guy who hocks his wedding ring before the separation agreement is signed.
—Greg Marotta, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hock
Cite this Entry
“Hock.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hock. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hock
1 of 3 noun
1
: the region in the hind limb of a four-footed animal (as the horse) that corresponds to the human ankle
2
: a small cut of meat from either the front or hind leg just above the foot especially of a pig
ham hocks
hock
2 of 3 verbhock
3 of 3 noun
: pawn entry 2 sense 2
got the ring out of hock
Etymology
Noun
Old English hōh "heel"
Noun
from Dutch hok "pen, prison"
Medical Definition
hock
noun
: the joint or region of the joint that unites the tarsal bones in the hind limb of a digitigrade quadruped (as the horse) and that corresponds to the human ankle but is elevated and bends backward
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
