Hoover

1 United States industrialist who manufactured vacuum cleaners (1849-1932) [syn: William Hoover, William Henry Hoover]

2 United States lawyer who was director of the FBI for 48 years (1895-1972) [syn: J. Edgar Hoover, John Edgar Hoover]

3 31st President of the United States; in 1929 the stock market crashed and the economy collapsed and Hoover was defeated for re-election by Franklin Roosevelt (1874-1964) [syn: Herbert Hoover, Herbert Clark Hoover, President Hoover]

4 a kind of vacuum cleaner v : clean with a vacuum cleaner; "vacuum the carpets" [syn: vacuum, vacuum-clean]

see hoover

English

Etymology

The common noun and verb are taken from the brand name of one of the first vacuum cleaners.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -uːvə(r)

Proper noun

1. A brand of vacuum cleaner.
2. A surname (shared by several famous people including J Edgar Hoover and Herbert Hoover).

Usage notes

• Hoover is a registered trademark of The Hoover Company. Its use as a generic term is a common example of trademark erosion.

The name Hoover may refer to:

People

• Herbert Hoover, 31st President of the United States, mining engineer
• J. Edgar Hoover, chief of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 48 years
• Lou Henry Hoover, wife of President Herbert Hoover
• M. Herbert Hoover, an Ohio politician
• Bob Hoover, legendary airshow and test pilot, author
• Brad Hoover, a fullback for the Carolina Panthers
• Brooks Robinson, a U.S. baseball player who acquired the nickname "the human vacuum cleaner" and then "Hoover"
• Erna Schneider Hoover, inventor of the computerized telephone switching system
• Larry Hoover, leader of the Gangster Disciples street gang
• Stevin Hoover, an investment manager who went to prison

Places

In the United States:

• Hoover, Alabama
• Hoover, Indiana
• Hoover Dam, originally named Boulder Dam
• Hoover Dam (Ohio), a dam on the Big Walnut Creek
• Hoover Field, Washington, D.C.'s first airport, located where the Pentagon now stands
• Hoover Tower, a 285-foot structure on the campus of Stanford University

Companies

• The Hoover Company, a former division of the Whirlpool Corporation sold to Techtronic Industries (famous for their vacuums)
• Hoover's, Inc., a business information company that is owned by Dun & Bradstreet
• Hoover Institution, a public policy think tank at Stanford University

Music

• Hoover (band), a post-hardcore band
• Hoover, original name of the music group now known as Hooverphonic
• Hoover (singer), a Country Western performer active in the 1960's and 70's
• Hoover sound, a heavy bass driven drone sound used in electronic music

Other

• Any vacuum cleaner, although originally a particular brand of The Hoover Company
• Hoover (seal), a harbor seal that learned to imitate basic human speech
• Hoover Index: Edgar Malone Hoover's inequality measure, also known as Robin Hood index
• Hoover is sometimes used as a slang term for oral sex.

See also

• Hover (disambiguation)