Meaning & use
hoppy
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Meaning
adjectivecomparableinformal
Having a strong bitter, floral or citrus-like flavor in beer, caused by plenty of hops in the brewing.
Grammar: Comes before a noun or after a linking verb: a hoppy beer; this lager is hoppy.
Patterns
- hoppy beer
- hoppy aroma
I prefer a hoppy pale ale to a sweet stout.
The brewery is known for its extremely hoppy IPAs.
That lager is a bit too hoppy for me.
Word forms
| comparative | hoppier |
|---|---|
| superlative | hoppiest |
Common combinations
- hoppy beer
- He ordered a hoppy beer to go with the spicy wings.
- a hoppy IPA
- They stock a hoppy IPA from a local brewery.
- hoppy and bitter
- The pale ale was hoppy and bitter with a citrus finish.
- a hoppy aroma
- The glass had a hoppy aroma of grapefruit and pine.
- nicely hoppy
- It is a nicely hoppy lager without too much bitterness.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bitter
- Bitter describes any sharp taste, whereas hoppy points specifically to the flavor that hops give to beer.
- citrusy
- Citrusy names one flavor note that hops can add, while hoppy covers the whole bitter, floral profile.
- piney
- Piney describes a specific resin-like note found in some hoppy beers, so it is narrower than hoppy.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: hoppy or hop?
hoppy vs hop
To hop is to make a small jump; hoppy, said of beer, comes from the plant noun hops and is unrelated to jumping.
Practice
Which word best describes a beer with a bold, bitter, citrus-like flavor from lots of hops?
Choose one answer.
'Hoppy' refers to the bitter, floral flavor that hops give. 'Malty' describes the sweeter grain flavor, a common contrast.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hoppy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.