hood

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hōd; akin to Old High German huot head covering, huota guard Date: before 12th century 1. a. (1) a flexible covering for the head and neck (2) a protective covering for the head and face b. a covering for a hawk's head and eyes c. a covering for a horse's head; also blinder 2. a. an ornamental scarf worn over an academic gown that indicates by its color the wearer's college or university b. a color marking or crest on the head of an animal or an expansion of the head that suggests a hood 3. a. something resembling a hood in form or use b. a cover for parts of mechanisms; specifically the movable metal covering over the engine of an automobile c. chiefly British a top cover over the passenger section of a vehicle usually designed to be folded back d. an enclosure or canopy provided with a draft for carrying off fumes, sprays, smokes, or dusts e. a covering for an opening (as a companion hatch) on a boat • hood transitive verb • hoodlike adjective II. noun Date: 1880 hoodlum • hoody adjective III. noun or 'hood Etymology: short for neighborhood Date: 1967 a neighborhood and especially an inner-city neighborhood; also inner city