I. ˈhəvə(r) also ˈhäv- verb
( hovered ; hovered ; hovering -v(ə)riŋ ; hovers )
Etymology: Middle English hoveren, freq. of hoven to hover
intransitive verb
1.
a. : to hang fluttering in the air or on the wing
the hawk hovered searching the ground below
: remain floating or suspended about or over a place or object
clouds of smoke hovered over the building
b. of an airplane : to maintain altitude without forward motion
2.
a. : to hang about : move to and fro near a place threateningly, watchfully, uncertainly, irresolutely
doormen annoy me … hovering anxiously over people — Evelyn Barkins
the shark was still hovering about — Francis Birtles
the thermometer hovered around 90
the boat hovered outside the three-mile limit
b. : to be in a state of uncertainty, irresolution or suspense
when he was hesitating or hovering over a word — David Abercrombie
hovering uncomfortably behind a cigar — Tennessee Williams
the country hovered on the brink of famine
3. : to crouch in hiding : cower
as if a gash had been torn in the web of restraint behind which she forced him to hover — Marcia Davenport
the bathtub fell … and crushed the woman hovering in the cellar — Springfield (Massachusetts) Union
4. dialect Britain : wait , linger
transitive verb
1. obsolete : to flutter (the wings) so as to remain suspended in air
2. : to brood over
a hen hovers her chicks
II. noun
( -s )
1. : the act or state of hovering
the sweep and hover of the pale birds — Mary H. Vorse
the smoke from the croft house rises, a hover of peat-scented blue — Naomi Mitchison
2. : a group of trout
3.
a. dialect : a shelter (as an overhanging bank or hedge) for an animal or fish
b. : a floating island of vegetation
4. : a canopy or other device for holding the heat of a brooder near the floor or ground so that it is available to young birds or animals cared for in the brooder