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Definitions

play hooky

VERB
escape
Synonyms
STRONGEST
avoid depart disappear dodge elude emerge evade flee fly leave run slip slip away vanish
STRONG
abscond bolt circumvent decamp desert double duck elope pass shun skip
WEAK
bail out burst out cut and run cut loose duck out fly the coop get away with get off go scot-free make getaway make off make oneself scarce run away run off run out on steal away take a powder take flight take on the lam work out of wriggle out
Antonyms
STRONGEST
appear arrive come confront continue encounter face meet stand stay take on wait walk
STRONG
accept aid assist help
WEAK
capture remain
VERB
lam
Synonyms
STRONG
abscond avoid blow bolt circumvent decamp depart desert disappear dodge double duck elope elude emerge evade flee fly leave pass run shun skip vanish
WEAK
bail out break out burst out cut and run cut loose duck out fly the coop get away get away with get off give someone the slip go scot-free make a getaway make getaway make off make oneself scarce run away run off run out on slip away steal away take a powder take flight take it on the lam take on the lam work out of wriggle out
Antonyms
STRONG
accept aid appear arrive assist come come in confront continue encounter face help meet remain stand stay stop take on wait walk
VERB
skip
Synonyms
STRONGEST
escape eschew pass up
STRONG
cut desert disregard flee neglect omit slip split
WEAK
leave out miss out pass over run away skim over
Antonyms
STRONG
stay
WEAK
face meet take on

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Don’t tell your boss, but if there was ever a day to play hooky, create a DIY three-day weekend and soak up the last rays of summer, this Monday could be it.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 30, 2022

"He would play hooky… and tan aggressively. He looked like a Versace bag."

From Fox News • Sep. 28, 2021

For many contemporary writers of fiction, The Novel looms balefully, a rigid school from which we should all be desperate to play hooky.

From The New Yorker • Oct. 3, 2016

“Fairly uncomfortable” is a massive understatement, given that your family is trying to convince you that your progressive, fatal illness is something you invented as an excuse to play hooky from work.

From Slate • Dec. 21, 2015

The street had to be roped off, the policemen had to keep the crowds back and children had to play hooky from school when there was a piano moving.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith