hackney

C2 Topic:Transportation

US /ˈhækni/ UK /ˈhækni/ See IPA manual

Freq #37319

Meanings

1

noun
a carriage or cab kept for public hire; now chiefly historical except in the term hackney carriage

They left the station in a hackney hired from the rank outside.
2

noun
a compact, high-stepping breed of harness horse

The Hackney moved around the ring with the breed's characteristic high action.
3

noun
an ordinary riding or driving horse, especially one available for hire; historical

The traveler hired a steady hackney for the journey to the next town.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a carriage or cab kept for... hackney carriagehackney coach cab

2 noun · a compact, high-stepping... Hackney horse

3 noun · an ordinary riding or... hire horsehack

Word family

Derived forms hack hackneyedhackneyman

Related forms carriage taxicabharness horse

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

hackney carriage
a carriage available for hire to carry passengers

Noun + noun

Etymology

From Middle English hakeney, 'a small saddle horse, especially one for hire,' probably from the place-name Hackney, near London, where horses may once have been pastured. The hire-horse sense extended to hired carriages and cabs; repeated common use also produced the figurative derivative hackneyed.

Topics

Transportation Word Formation & Derivatives Register & Style

External links

# hackney

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈhækni/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈhækni/
**Frequency rank:** 37319

## Meanings
1. a carriage or cab kept for public hire; now chiefly historical except in the term hackney carriage
2. a compact, high-stepping breed of harness horse
3. an ordinary riding or driving horse, especially one available for hire; historical

## Examples
- They left the station in a hackney hired from the rank outside.
- The Hackney moved around the ring with the breed's characteristic high action.
- The traveler hired a steady hackney for the journey to the next town.

## Synonyms
- hackney carriage
- hackney coach
- cab
- hire horse

## Derived Forms
- hack
- hackneyed
- hackneyman

## Related Forms
- carriage
- taxicab
- harness horse

## Etymology
From Middle English hakeney, 'a small saddle horse, especially one for hire,' probably from the place-name Hackney, near London, where horses may once have been pastured. The hire-horse sense extended to hired carriages and cabs; repeated common use also produced the figurative derivative hackneyed.

## Topics
- Transportation
- Word Formation & Derivatives
- Register & Style

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