play hooky
Meaning(s)
1. to skip work, school, or duties without permission or a valid/suitable excuse
Popularity
Medium
Professional
Medium
Social
How to Memorize
play hooky from school/work
Analysis
To 'play hooky' is to skip school or work without a valid or good excuse. Similar meaning expressions include 'play truant' or 'go mitching'. This is a phrase you will more often hear in social situations to talk about children skipping school, or employees calling in sick where others do not really believe that they are in fact, sick.
Social Examples (Basic)
- Let's play hooky from work and go see that concert today.
- Students were playing hooky from school because there was a difficult test scheduled for that morning.
Professional Examples (Basic)
- I discovered a number of our staff were playing hooky when I saw their social media posts.
- With a company web doctor, it is easy to find out if your staff are really sick or are playing hooky.