hackney

¹

[hak-nee]

noun

plural

hackneys 

1. Also called hackney coach. a carriage or coach for hire; cab.

2. a trotting horse used for drawing a light carriage or the like.

3. a horse used for ordinary riding or driving.

4. (initial capital letter),  one of an English breed of horses having a high-stepping gait.

adjective

1. let out, employed, or done for hire.

verb (used with object)

1. to make trite, common, or stale by frequent use.

2. to use as a hackney.

Hackney

²

[hak-nee]

noun

1. a borough of Greater London, England.

hackney

¹

/ ˈhæknɪ /

noun

1. a compact breed of harness horse with a high-stepping trot

2. 1. a coach or carriage that is for hire

   2. ( as modifier )

      a hackney carriage

3. a popular term for hack 2

verb

1. (tr; usually passive) to make commonplace and banal by too frequent use

Hackney

²

/ ˈhæknɪ /

noun

1. a borough of NE Greater London: formed in 1965 from the former boroughs of Shoreditch, Stoke Newington, and Hackney; nearby are Hackney Marshes, the largest recreation ground in London. Pop: 208 400 (2003 est). Area: 19 sq km (8 sq miles)

Other Word Forms

• hackneyism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of hackney¹

1300–50; Middle English hakeney, special use of placename Hackney, Middlesex, England

Word History and Origins

Origin of hackney¹

C14: probably after _Hackney , where horses were formerly raised; sense 4 meaning derives from the allusion to a weakened hired horse

Example Sentences

They will be available for fans and scholars to view when the David Bowie Centre opens at the V&A East Storehouse in Hackney Wick on 13 September.

From BBC

Born in 1982, Polanski grew up in Salford, heading to university in Aberystwyth, north Wales, before ending up in Hackney, east London.

From BBC

Kennedi Westcarr-Sabaroche, 25, was found dead in the Vauxhall car in Whiston Road, Hackney, on 6 April last year, having been strangled.

From BBC

People arriving by train can also get a hackney carriage to the site, or use the shuttle bus service via Reading Buses.

From BBC

Riley's trial heard the shooting appeared to be part of an ongoing dispute between two rival gangs, the Hackney Turks and the Tottenham Turks.

From BBC

Related Words

• carriage 
• taxi 
• taxicab