hoe

¹

[ hoh ]

noun

1. a long-handled implement having a thin, flat blade usually set transversely, used to break up the surface of the ground, destroy weeds, etc.
2. any of various implements of similar form, as for mixing plaster or mortar.

verb (used with object)

, hoed, hoe·ing.

1. to dig, scrape, weed, cultivate, etc., with a hoe.

verb (used without object)

, hoed, hoe·ing.

1. to use a hoe.

Hoe

²

[ hoh ]

noun

1. Richard, 1812–86, U.S. inventor and manufacturer of printing-press equipment.
2. his father Robert, 1784–1833, U.S. manufacturer of printing presses.

hoe

/ həʊ /

noun

1. any of several kinds of long-handled hand implement equipped with a light blade and used to till the soil, eradicate weeds, etc

verb

1. to dig, scrape, weed, or till (surface soil) with or as if with a hoe

Derived Forms

• ˈhoer, noun
• ˈhoeˌlike, adjective

Other Words From

• hoer noun
• hoelike adjective
• un·hoed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hoe¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English howe, from Old French houe, from Germanic; compare Middle Dutch houwe, Old High German houwa “mattock”; akin to hew

Word History and Origins

Origin of hoe¹

C14: via Old French houe from Germanic: compare Old High German houwā, houwan to hew , German Haue hoe

Idioms and Phrases

see tough row to hoe .

Example Sentences

Another altered the Trader Joe’s logo to read “Trader Hoe’s.”

From Salon

More than 1,000 people stood shoulder-to-shoulder on Hoe Street as all of the shops shut up early for the evening.

From BBC

Formerly known as Roslyn Hoe, it had become a small hotel by the 1930s.

From BBC

Despite the rain, organizers expected a turnout of around 50,000 people for Saturday’s Yeon Deung Hoe, or Lotus Lantern Festival, whose evening parade draws huge crowds out to see the featured floats, some carried and others rolled on wheels along the downtown area of the capital, Seoul.

From Seattle Times

A hoe, a saw, a rake...none of these were big enough.

From Literature

Related Words

• bore
• bulldoze
• burrow
• clean
• discover
• dredge
• drill
• enter
• excavate
• exhume
• go into
• gouge
• harvest
• penetrate
• scoop
• search
• shovel
• sift
• uncover
• unearth