What does "hover" mean?
An act, or the state, of remaining stationary in the air or some other place.
Hover
/ˈhɒvə/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An act, or the state, of remaining stationary in the air or some other place.
- Grammar: hover is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: aeroplane, airlift, airplane, approach.
- Useful contrasts: activate, click, depart.
- Usage evidence: "When you're ready, pick it up and hover over to the helipad."
How to use "hover"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "hover" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "hover" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "hover" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "hover" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "hover" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "aeroplane" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "hover", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An act, or the state, of remaining stationary in the air or some other place.
- 2 A flock of birds fluttering in the air in one place.
- 3 An act, or the state, of being suspended; a suspension. figuratively
- 4 A cover; a protection; a shelter; specifically, an overhanging bank or stone under which fish can shelter; also, a shelter for hens brooding their eggs. Southern-England
"Oyſters grevv vpon boughs of trees (an Indian miracle) vvhich vvere caſt in [the pond] thither, to ſerue as a houer for the fiſh."
Verb
- 1 To keep (something, such as an aircraft) in a stationary state in the air. transitive
- 2 hang in the air; fly or be suspended above wordnet
- 3 Of a bird: to shelter (chicks) under its body and wings; (by extension) of a thing: to cover or surround (something). transitive
"Castration has a ſtrange effect: it emaſculates both man, beaſt, and bird, and brings them to a near reſemblance of the other ſex. […] Capons have ſmall combs and gills, and look pallid about the head, like pullets; they alſo vvalk vvithout any parade, and hover chickens like hens."
- 4 be suspended in the air, as if in defiance of gravity wordnet
- 5 Of a bird or insect: to flap (its wings) so it can remain stationary in the air. obsolete, transitive
"O'er the deer Corps ſomtimes her vvings ſhe [an eagle] hovers, / Somtimes the dead breſt vvith her breſt ſhe covers, […]"
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 to hang about in a place beyond the proper or usual time wordnet
- 7 To remain stationary or float in the air. intransitive
"The hummingbird hovered by the plant."
- 8 be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action wordnet
- 9 Sometimes followed by over: to hang around or linger in a place, especially in an uncertain manner. figuratively, intransitive
"His pen hovered above the paper."
- 10 hang over, as of something threatening, dark, or menacing wordnet
- 11 To be indecisive or uncertain; to vacillate, to waver. figuratively, intransitive
"Filling in the voting form, I hovered between Labour and Liberal Democrat."
- 12 Chiefly followed by over: to use a mouse or other device to place a cursor over something on a screen such as a hyperlink or icon without clicking, so as to produce a result (such as the appearance of a tooltip). intransitive
"A tooltip appears when you hover over this link."
- 13 To travel in a hovercraft as it moves above a water surface. intransitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
""When you're ready, pick it up and hover over to the helipad.""
Common questions
What is a synonym for "hover"?
Common synonyms include: aeroplane, airlift, airplane, approach, around, ascend.
How do you use "hover" in a sentence?
"When you're ready, pick it up and hover over to the helipad."
How do you pronounce "hover"?
Pronounced /ˈhɒvə/.
Etymology
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.