hmm

Formshmms, hmming, hmmed

1. 1
   I'm thinkinginterjection

   Used to indicate that the speaker is thinking something over or weighing a decision.

   Hmm, that clue could point to either suspect.

   Hmm, let me check the calendar before I commit to that date.

   Similarwell, um

   Note

   The thinking noise, written down: the word is a spelling of hum, the sound of someone mulling something over with closed lips. In writing it usually trails off into an ellipsis or a comma, and it is often lengthened to hmmm to show longer deliberation. That trailing punctuation, and a level or falling pitch in speech, separates it from the rising Hmm? of the puzzled response and the demand for an answer. Source

   Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

   • Hmm is a variant spelling of hum. en.wiktionary.org
   • Humming is produced with closed lips. en.wiktionary.org
2. 2
   interjection

   Used to express doubt, suspicion, or skepticism about something just said, or mild disapproval of it.

   "I was at the library all night." "Hmm. Then why is your car still in the driveway?"

   A guaranteed thirty percent return every year? Hmm, that sounds too good to be true.

   UsageTone matters: a doubtful hmm on its own can sound quietly rude.

   Note

   Same sound, different attitude from the "thinking it over" hmm. In speech the doubt is carried by tone, often a drawn-out or falling hum; in writing it is carried by what comes next, usually a pointed question or a verdict such as that sounds too good to be true.

3. 3
   caught off guardinterjection

   Used to express surprise or momentary confusion, especially when one is unexpectedly questioned or addressed.

   Hmm? I didn't catch that. Could you repeat the question?

   Hmm? Oh, the report. Right, I'll send it over this afternoon.

   Similarhuh, eh, what, pardon, sorry

   Note

   Here the sound buys time rather than signaling thought. It usually stands alone as a whole reply, and it is often followed by a recovery (Hmm? Oh, …) as the speaker catches up. Bertie Wooster uses it this way in a 1991 episode of Jeeves and Wooster, left puzzled by Jeeves's remark about 1776. Unlike the impatient demand, it asks the other person to repeat or explain, because the speaker is the one who is lost. Source

   Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

   • The referenced episode of Jeeves and Wooster aired in 1991: "Kidnapped!", first broadcast on 12 May 1991. en.wikipedia.org
   • Bertie Wooster says "Hmm?" and asks what happened in 1776 after Jeeves's remark about that year. en.wiktionary.org
4. 4
   answer meinterjection

   Used to demand an answer to a question, often tacked onto the question itself or repeated when no reply comes.

   So where exactly were you all afternoon, hmm?

   Hmm? Don't just stand there. Explain yourself.

   UsageSounds pushy, as from a parent or a mock-stern friend, so it is best kept out of polite requests.

   Similareh, huh, well

   Note

   Impatience is the point of this use. It is tacked onto the end of a question already asked, or repeated into a silence, and its sharp rising pitch tells the listener that a reply is overdue. Because it presses rather than asks, it reads as a challenge.

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