Added 9 October 2026
hover
/ˈhɒvə/ verb
In Latin: oberrō, pendeō, volitō Wiktionary
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about hover at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- To keep (something, such as an aircraft) in a stationary state in the air. Of a bird: to shelter (chicks) under its body and wings; of a thing: to cover or surround (something). Of a bird or insect: to flap (its wings) so it can remain stationary in the air.
- To keep (something, such as an aircraft) in a stationary state in the air.
- Of a bird: to shelter (chicks) under its body and wings; of a thing: to cover or surround (something).
noun
- An act, or the state, of remaining stationary in the air or some other place.
- A flock of birds fluttering in the air in one place.
- An act, or the state, of being suspended; a suspension.
Origin
The verb is derived from Middle English hoveren (“to float in the air, hover; to stay”), probably from hoven (“hover; of a bird: to fly high in the air, soar”) (which it displaced) + -er- (frequentative suffix). Hoven is probably derived from Old English *hōfian, from hōfon, the plural past indicative form of hebban (“to lift, raise”), from Proto-West Germanic *habbjan, from Proto-Germanic *habjaną (“to lift; to heave”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂p- (“to hold, seize”). The English word is analysable as hove (“(obsolete) to remain suspended, float, hover; to linger, wait”) + -er (frequentative suffix). The noun is derived from the verb.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)