Other forms: hooves, hoofs
A hoof is the hard foot of a horse, cow or deer. A cracked hoof, pick out the hooves, trim the hooves.
The plural is hooves or hoofs, with hooves commoner. A hoof is made of keratin, the same material as a fingernail, and grows continuously, which is why horses need trimming and shoeing. A farrier does that work. Note on the hoof, meaning while walking or, figuratively, while going along without planning — decisions made on the hoof; and cloven hoof, which is the split kind on cattle, sheep and pigs.
1nounhoofThe hard foot of a horse, cow or deer.
“The hoof was cracked and the horse was lame for a month.”
synonyms: hooves
hoof is an animal foot.
Also accepted in games: hooves
Old English hof descends from a Proto-Indo-European root that also gives Sanskrit sapha. It is one of the oldest animal-body words in the language and has barely shifted in form.
Old English
hōf
Middle English
hof
English, today
hoof
From Middle English hof, from Old English hōf. Middle English hof,houf,houve,hove, from Old English hōf, from Proto-Germanic hōfaz, from Proto-Indo-European ḱoph₂ós (compare Sanskrit शफ (“hoof, claw”), ae 𐬯𐬀𐬟𐬀 (“hoof”), possibly Czech -, Polish kopyto).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA