Hooray

Podcast 1 · Introduction

Hooray

A documentary-style narration: origin, meaning, and feel.

Part of speech

exclamation and noun

Pronunciation

huh-RAY  /həˈreɪ/

Definition

An exclamation used to express joy, approval, enthusiasm, or victory; a shout of celebration or triumph. Also used as a noun: a shout of hooray. Variant spellings include hurray and hurrah.

Plain meaning

Hooray is what you shout when something great happens — it is a cheer of joy, celebration, or enthusiasm. Players might shout hooray after winning a game; a crowd shouts it at a rally; children shout it at good news. Hurray and hurrah are alternative spellings of the same exclamation.

Register

Informal and celebratory. Hooray is used in spontaneous expressions of joy or approval — not in formal writing. The phrase Hooray Henry (and its feminine equivalent Henrietta) is British informal, mildly derogatory, and class-specific. Three cheers and hip, hip, hooray are more formal celebratory formulas.