hooraw

1. Used to express joy, excitement, amusement, or approval; hooray.

   "Hooraw—hooraw!" cried a dozen and a half of boys, "here be Hempror o' Roosia coming."

   1865 May – 1866 August, Richard Doddridge Blackmore, chapter XVI, in Cradock Nowell: A Tale of the New Forest. […], volume III, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1866, →OCLC, page 265

   3 more examples

   Then hooraw for the Tars of old England so free, The pride of the world, and the lords of the sea, The pride of the world, and the lords of the sea.

   1825, Charles Dibdin, The Sea Songs of the Immortal Charles Dibdin, page 90

   “Hooraw !” cried one of the spectators, whose red flannel shirt seemed to indicate the propriety of looking out for a new One.

   1844, Charles Sealsfield, Life In The New World; Or Sketches Of American Society

   "Hooraw for the 'Lantas! Hooraw for the girls! Hooraw for the Institoot!" shout a hundred voices.

   1889, Mrs. J. W. Shoemaker, The Elocutionist’s Annual, number 17, page 46

plural hooraws

1. A noisy or boisterous gathering or activity; uproar.

   We've had us one hooraw this afternoon, and that's enough.

   2010, Stephen King, The Green Mile, →ISBN, page 172

   3 more examples

   They march in processions and get up hooraws, And wade through the mud for the good of the cause

   1889 January-June, Martin J. Griffin, “Diary of a Visitor in New York During the Presidential Election”, in Murray's Magazine, volume 5, page 89

   Today the arts had been abandoned for sport, in this case basketball, and from the hooraw going on in the corner of the room it would appear some money was riding on the outcome.

   1997, Dana Stabenow, Breakup, →ISBN, page 171

   Compared to the audience at that first special session, these Marsrats didn'g partake of any shouting matches, cries for attention or self-centered complaining about quake damage. No hooraw at all, which struck me as surprising and surely disappointed Black-like-me.

   2003, William Walling, Olympus Mons, →ISBN

2. An unsophisticated person.

   Besides, some of those hooraws will know you on sight.

   2012, William W. Johnstone, Blood of Eagles, →ISBN

   2 more examples

   "I never knew no hooraws before, Long Man," said Clint. "Reckon I can get used to you, though."

   2016, William T. Delamar, Atavus Falls, →ISBN

   Well, I might be a hooraw, but I didn't creep out of no patch of skunk cabbage.

   2016, William T. Delamar, Atavus Falls, →ISBN

3. A nonce word.

   After unleashing a tirade of profanity: Lawrence Will recorded his response as: “Dag-nabbit, I can't even set foot on the blasphemous property to see what in the hooraw I've bought!”

   2006, Michael Grunwald, The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise, →ISBN, page 785

   2 more examples

   In fact, when you see all these things happening, Mr. Speaker, when you listen to that kind of hooraw — coming from the other side — it is a wonderful example of the awful things that can happen when cousins marry.

   1978, Canada. Parliament. House of Commons, House of Commons Debates, Official Report - Volume 2, page 1501

   So the Consecrates are cocked and primed to go off, in an explosion of reinterpretations, reformations, counter-reformations, revelations, new doctrines, fundamentalist reactions, and every other kind of hooraw we humans have been through.

   2011, Poul Anderson, The Trouble Twisters, →ISBN

present singular third person hooraws · participle present hoorawing · participle past hoorawed · past hoorawed

1. To make loud noises at, such as when driving horses or cattle.

   He was in the act of dismounting when someone up ahead through the underbrush hoorawed a loose horse.

   2008, Lauran Paine, Feud on the Mesa, →ISBN, page 216

   2 more examples

   As the driver hoorawed the horses and the three other passengers grabbed the hand straps for support, Friendly ran up to Longarm's window, looking harried.

   2007, Tabor Evans, Longarm and the Dwarf's Darling, →ISBN

   Some of the boys down there still had their rifles and he'd be deader than mutton a second after he started to hooraw the herd.

   2011, Ralph Compton, Joseph A. West, The Last Manhunt, →ISBN

2. To loudly and publicly celebrate or express support for someone or something.

   I wuz permitted 2 rize after hoorawing for Duglis.

   1969, John M. Harrison, The Man who Made Nasby: David Ross Locke, page 73

   2 more examples

   Sha'nt I have to hooraw nor nothin'? 'cause 'twould go awfully agin my conshence to hooraw for Van Buren.

   1867, Mrs. Francis Miriam (Berry) Whitcher, M. L. Ward Whitcher, Widow Spriggins, Mary Elmer, and Other Sketches, page 370

   Seems to me I hoorawed around for a while an' poured me a snort o' redeye to celebrate, but then I got to thinkin'.

   2012, Charlotte MacLeod, The Grub-and-Stakers House a Haunt, →ISBN

3. To fool; to trick.

   Hey, you just got hoorawed, boy, you got your leg pulled.

   2011, Brian Garfield, Wild Times

   2 more examples

   I know all about the limit, but I figure a man as smart and important as you can find a way to hooraw the deal so the other owners won't know.

   2015, James W. Bennett, Donald Raycraft, Old Hoss: A Fictional Baseball Biography of Charles Radbourn, →ISBN

   I wasn't going to let myself be hoorawed by any avaricious bush mechanic, especially one who looked like he wasn't busy, as this one did.

   2016, Jake Jacobson, Alaska Flying: Surviving Incidents & Accidents, →ISBN

4. To make fun of.

   And that grinnin' Banty Tillotson will hooraw me for a week.

   2011, Elmer Kelton, Dark Thicket, →ISBN

   2 more examples

   Yo' see, it happen so : Marse Chan he wuz a- speakin' down at de Deep Creek Tavern, an' he kind o' got de bes' of ole Cun'l Chahmb'lin. All de white folks laughed an' hoorawed, an' ole Cun'l Chahmb'lin -- My Lawd! I t'ought he'd 'a' bu'st, he was so mad.

   1897, Thomas Nelson Page, Marse Chan: A Tale of Old Virginia, page 21

   She told Morgan, whose face was still badly swollen and bruised, that he cut a grand handsome figure, and he wondered how, in her female scheme of things, it was acceptable for her to hooraw his appearance when he was not allowed to poke innocent fun at hers.

   2010, Howard Frank Mosher, Walking to Gatlinburg: A Novel, →ISBN, page 214