hop
1. verb, informal To board (some mode of transportation), especially very quickly, abruptly, or impulsively. I decided at the last minute to hop the bus to Seattle to spend the weekend with my family. I used to hop the trains all over Europe back when I was studying in Budapest. I didn't feel like working on such a beautiful day, so I hopped a bus into the city center.
2. verb, informal To cross (something, especially a body of water) in an aircraft, especially very quickly. The new jet is able to hop the Atlantic in just under three hours. Why don't we just take a propeller plane to hop the English Channel? It would be so much faster than a ferry. Yeah, Hawaii's a long flight—we can't just hop the Pacific Ocean, I'm afraid.
3. verb, informal To move from one place, thing, or activity to another in quick succession. Used in combinations (often hyphenated). We spent most of the night bar hopping all around town. I used to movie-hop all the time when I was a broke college student. It might not have been the most ethical thing in the world, but I was able to see tons of movies I otherwise couldn't afford. Come on, let's shop hop—nothing in this place interests me.
4. noun, informal A very quick trip, especially by aircraft. We'll have to fly from New York to London, and then it's just a short hop to Dublin. A: "What's a quick hop from Australia?" B: "Well, certainly not the US!" I know they say our destination is just a hop away, but I don't want to ride in a helicopter for any length of time! They freak me out!
5. noun, dated A social dance party, especially one aimed at young people. A: "Hey, Shirley, you going to the hop this Saturday?" B: "Well, gee whiz, Nancy-Anne, I sure am!" Has anyone asked you to the hop yet, Patsy? I just got a new dress for the hop on Saturday night!
6. noun, slang Opium. I heard John got arrested for smoking hop in an opium den on Broome Street. With how glassy her eyes were, I wondered whether she'd been smoking hop before she came over to meet me. By cracking down on hop, the task force is hoping to strike the main source of funding for the dictatorship.
hop it
To leave something or some place very quickly or suddenly. If I'd had such a rude customer come into my shop, I would have told him to hop it. Would you hop it already? Gosh, you're such a pest! We were told to hop it because we were being disruptive in the library.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.