hookup

1 of 2

noun

hook·​up ˈhu̇k-ˌəp How to pronounce hookup (audio)
1
: a state of cooperation or alliance
2
: an assemblage (as of circuits) used for a specific purpose (such as radio transmission)
also : the plan of such an assemblage
3
: an arrangement of mechanical parts
also : connection
a campsite with electric, water, and sewer hookups
4
: an act or an instance of hooking up
especially : a casual sexual encounter

hook up

2 of 2

verb

hooked up; hooking up; hooks up

intransitive verb

1
: to become associated especially in a working or social relationship
The quartet hooked up in 1990 with Reggie Andrews, a high school music teacher who taught the naive group the nuts and bolts of album making and the record industry.Lorraine Ali
… achieve your next fantasy camp experience in skiing. Do so by hooking up with Olympic medalist Christin Cooper and her husband Mark Tache, a former U.S. Ski Team and U.S. Pro Tour racer.Skiing
Judy Ratner was my first best friend. We hooked up in second grade, soon after my family had moved down the block from her house, in a New Jersey suburb.Marialisa Calta
2
informal : to have a casual sexual encounter
… on Covert Affairs, Christopher Gorham plays a blind CIA tech operative who hooks up with lovely girls …Libby Gelman-Waxner

transitive verb

: connect
hooked up the trailer
hook up a hose to the faucet
Intrigued, the researchers hooked up an infrared video camera and let it roll overnight.Henry Fountain

Examples of hookup in a Sentence

Noun The interview will be broadcast through a satellite hookup. The cabin has electric and water hookups. Verb former classmates who hooked up and started a business together
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Noun
Intoxicated or high individuals cannot give consent, yet many hookups happen under the influence. Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2025 Result: Twin Lakes how features 3,500 linear feet of waterfront on King Lake and Holley Lakes, 12 docks and 65 full hookup RV sites. Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2025
Verb
The White Bridge Road campus also has a classroom that mimics a hospital room with a dummy that gives birth and a miniature dummy hooked up to tubes that offers training on caring for infants in the neonatal intensive care unit. Beth Warren, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025 In the video, Munn, 45, is in her hospital bed, hooked up to machines and wearing a hairnet. Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 20 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for hookup

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1903, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1904, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hookup was in 1903

Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Hookup.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hookup. Accessed 4 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

hookup

noun
hook·​up ˈhu̇k-ˌəp How to pronounce hookup (audio)
1
2
a
: an arrangement (as of circuits) used for a specific purpose (as in radio)
b
: the diagram of such an arrangement
3
: an arrangement of mechanical parts

More from Merriam-Webster on hookup

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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