hunch
noun/hʌntʃ/
/hʌntʃ/
- a feeling that something is true even though you do not have any evidence to prove it
- It seemed that the doctor's hunch had been right.
- My hunch is that the burglars are still in the area.
- hunch (that)… I had a hunch (that) you’d be back.
- to follow/back your hunches
Extra Examples- He decided to back his hunches with serious money.
- Her hunches were confirmed the next day.
- I called on a hunch to ask if he had any work for me.
- I decided to follow my hunch and come and see you.
- I had a hunch that she was not telling the truth.
- They now have a database of information to back their hunches about customers' preferences.
- I didn't know for certain—I was just going on a hunch.
- I had a hunch that you might be here.
- The detective's hunch had been right.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- strong
- have
- act on
- follow
- …
- on a hunch
Word Originlate 15th cent.: of unknown origin. The original meaning was ‘push, shove’ (noun and verb), a sense retained now in Scots as a noun, and in US dialect as a verb. This sense of the noun probably derives from a US sense of the verb ‘nudge someone in order to draw attention to something’.Definitions on the go
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hunch