hip

HIP/hɪp/

Pluralhips

Adjectivehipper, hippest

Verbhips, hipping, hipped

12 meanings of hip

Practice

1
nouncountable
The part on each side of your body where the leg joins the lower body.
Like the spot where your leg connects to your body so you can bend and walk.
She rested her hand on her hip while she waited.
He hurt his hip when he fell off the ladder.
Note
2
adjectiveslang
Knowing about the newest and coolest styles, music, or ideas.
Like a friend who always knows about a cool new song before anyone else.
She's really hip and always knows the latest songs.
They tried to seem hip by wearing trendy clothes.
Similartrendy, cool, fashionable, stylish
Oppositeunfashionable, uncool, square, dated
Note
3
interjection
A shout used to start a group cheer, as in "hip hip hooray."
The crowd shouted, "Hip, hip, hooray!" as the runner crossed the line.
After the toast, everyone joined in a hearty "hip hip hooray."
4
nouncountable
The small red fruit that grows on a rose plant after the flowers fade.
Like the tiny fruit a tree leaves behind, but made by a rose.
After the roses faded, each bright red hip on the bush filled with seeds.
They gathered hips in the fall to make a tart jelly.
Similarrosehip
Note
5
nouncountable
The slanted outer edge where two sloping sides of a roof meet.
Like the slanted edge of a tent where two sides come together.
Rain ran down the hip of the roof and into the gutter.
Workers added metal flashing along the hip to keep water out.
Oppositevalley
6
verbslangtransitive
To tell someone about something so they know about it.
Like passing a note to a friend so they know a secret.
Can you hip me to what's going on?
A friend hipped me to the best taco spot in town.
Similarinform, brief
Note
7
verbtransitive
To knock into someone using the side of your body near your waist.
Like nudging a door shut with your side when your hands are full.
Players sometimes hip each other to win the puck.
She hipped her brother away from the cookie jar.
Similarbump, check, shove, barge
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8
verbtransitive
To throw an opponent over your hip in wrestling.
Like flipping a heavy bag over your side to set it down.
Try to hip your opponent when he leans in toward you.
The wrestler hipped his rival onto the mat.
Similarthrow
Note
9
verbtransitive
To build a roof with sloping ends that meet the sides at slanted edges.
They decided to hip the new garage roof.
The builders hipped the roof so rain would run off all four sides.
Note
10
nouncountable
The point on a bridge frame where a slanted end beam meets the top beam.
Like the corner where the slanted leg of a ladder meets the top step.
Engineers checked the hip of the old truss for cracks.
The bridge failed near the hip, where the metal had rusted.
Note
11
verbtransitive
To injure an animal's hip so badly that one side stays sunken for good.
Rough handling can hip cattle and leave them permanently lame.
The mare was hipped when she slipped against the gate.

Less common meaning

12
noundatedcountable
A person who is addicted to drugs, especially heroin.
Everyone on the block knew the old hip who hung around the corner.
Ike explained to me that the Mexican government issued permits to hips allowing them a definite quantity of morphine per month at wholesale prices.
1953, William Lee [pseudonym; William S. Burroughs], JunkieHere, hips means people who are addicted to drugs.
Similaraddict, junkie
Note

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of hip apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 1, 5, 7–12

From Old English hype, meaning the hip of the body. It goes back to an old root meaning "to bend."

Meaning 4

From Old English hēope, meaning the fruit of a rose. It comes from an old root meaning "briar" or "thorn."

Meanings 2, 6

The origin is unknown or disputed. It is probably a variant of "hep," with both forms appearing in the early 20th century.