hug
gb/hˈʌɡ/ us/hˈʌɡ/
A1
English
~ 600
Senses
0 senses
Verb
A1
action
1
Hold someone closely in arms
To put your arms around someone and hold them to show you like or care about them.
Usage pattern:
to hug [someone]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'hug' with 'hold hands', but hugging involves putting arms around someone, not holding their hand.
Synonyms
embrace (Slightly more formal and can also refer to accepting ideas.)
Antonyms
push away (Physically moving someone away from you instead of holding them close.)
Collocations
hug tightly
|hug warmly
|hug goodbye
|hug each other
Themes
emotions
|daily life
|relationships
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- She hugged her friend tightly after the long trip.
- He hugged his mother before leaving for the airport.
- They hugged each other with joy when they met again.
- I always hug my children before bedtime.
Learner examples
- I hug my dad every morning.
- She hugs her cat when she is happy.
- We hug when we say goodbye.
- He hugs his sister on her birthday.
Noun
A1
action
2
An act of holding in arms
When you put your arms around someone to show you like or care about them.
Usage pattern:
give [someone] a hug
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes say 'make a hug' instead of 'give a hug'. The correct collocation is 'give a hug'.
Synonyms
embrace (Slightly more formal; can also mean acceptance of ideas.)
Antonyms
rejection (In a social-emotional sense, avoiding physical or emotional closeness.)
Collocations
big hug
|warm hug
|friendly hug
|bear hug
Themes
emotions
|daily life
|relationships
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- She gave me a big hug before I left.
- A warm hug can make you feel better.
- He greeted his grandmother with a friendly hug.
- They exchanged hugs at the airport.
Learner examples
- I gave my friend a hug.
- She needs a hug today.
- He gave his mom a warm hug.
- We shared a big hug.
Verb
B1
action
3
Hold close to surface or edge
To stay very near to something like a wall or road while moving.
Usage pattern:
to hug [surface/edge/path]
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse this with the emotional meaning of 'hug' when context is actually about position or movement.
Synonyms
stick to (Informal; can mean to stay very close to or follow something.)
Antonyms
veer away from (To move away from a path or surface instead of staying close to it.)
Collocations
hug the wall
|hug the coast
|hug the curb
Themes
movement
|navigation
|space
|travel
Examples
- The car hugged the curve as it sped along the road.
- We hugged the coastline during our sailing trip.
- He hugged the wall to avoid being seen.
- The hikers hugged the riverbank for most of the journey.
Learner examples
- The boat hugged the shore.
- She hugged the wall in the dark room.
- The car hugged the road on the curve.
- We hugged the path through the forest.
Grammar
Dictionary form
hug
IPA
GB/hˈʌɡ/
US/hˈʌɡ/
Syllables & stress
hug (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (hug)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: hug
- Plural: hugs
Verb
- Base: hug
- 3rd Person Singular: hugs
- Present Participle: hugging
- Past: hugged
Word family
Forms
hugs
noun
hugging
verb
hugged
verb
Related words
hugger
noun
huggable
adjective
Highlights
- Irregular present participle: hugging Verb
- Irregular past: hugged Verb
Expressions
bear hug
1/bˈɛɹ hˈʌɡ/
fixed phrase
Very tight embrace with arms
A very strong and tight way of hugging someone with both arms.
Examples
- He lifted her off the ground in a bear hug.
- His bear hug almost took my breath away.
give someone a hug
1/ɡˈɪv sˈʌmwˌʌn ə hˈʌɡ/
fixed phrase
Embrace someone affectionately
To put your arms around someone to show you like or care about them.
Examples
- Before leaving, she gave her father a big hug.
- He gave me a hug when I was sad.
hug it out
1/hˈʌɡ ˈɪt ˈaʊt/
idiom
informal
Resolve conflict with embrace
To end an argument by hugging each other.
Examples
- They decided to hug it out after their fight.
- Come on, let's just hug it out and move on.