hookup

1 of 2

noun

hook·​up ˈhu̇k-ˌəp 

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

Synonyms

Noun

• affiliation
• alliance
• association
• collaboration
• confederation
• connection
• cooperation
• liaison
• linkup
• partnership
• relation
• relationship
• tie-up
• union

Verb

• associate
• chum
• company
• consociate
• consort
• fraternize
• hang (around or out)
• hobnob
• mess around
• pal (around)
• run
• sort
• travel

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

Noun

Once the initial shock subsides, Kit and Theo decide this is the perfect opportunity to prove who won the breakup – with a hookup competition. —Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 20 Dec. 2024

Amrit Kaur, who plays Bela, tells TVLine of her reaction to the unusual hookup. —Vlada Gelman, TVLine, 13 Dec. 2024

Verb

Nico and Kiernan’s exes are obviously going to hook up, right? —Emma Specter, Vogue, 20 Dec. 2024

Even beyond the idea that an actual curse has befallen Ruby — or has befallen everyone with the bad luck (or judgment?) to have hooked up with her — Laid operates in an exaggerated version of reality where genuine human emotion has to jostle for space with cartoon plot logic. —Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1903, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1904, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Kids Definition

hookup

noun

hook·​up ˈhu̇k-ˌəp 

1

: connection sense 2, alliance

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