hoy
/hɔɪ/noun, interjection, verb
hoy is spelled H-O-Y: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Hoy, the name). As a noun, hoy means “A small coaster vessel, usually sloop-rigged, used in conveying passengers and goods, or as a tender to larger vessels in port” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of hoy is hoys.
How many letters and syllables are in hoy?
| Letters | 3: H-O-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,092nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is hoy?
Hoy appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Hoy, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce hoy?
- /hɔɪ/
Hoy has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-hoy.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with hoy
Also written: hoi.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with hoy?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as hoy.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: yoh.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of hoy
- hoys plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- hoi
- hoying participle, present
- hoyed participle, past
- hoyin participle, present
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does hoy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A small coaster vessel, usually sloop-rigged, used in conveying passengers and goods, or as a tender to larger vessels in port.
Per packet per Hoy.
interjection
- 1
Hey! ho!, hallo!, stop!
verb
- 1
To incite; to drive onward.
- 2
AustraliaTo throw.
noun
- 1
Initialism of head of year.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hoy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense small coaster vessel:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | heu |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does hoy come from?
Borrowed from German Heu or Dutch gooi.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).