hook up1
1 (also hook someone/thing up) Link or be linked to electronic equipment: [with object]: Ali was hooked up to an electrocardiograph...
- There is also a links page, which hooks you up to a number of rare book sites and other author sites.
- This is the process where your computer or server tries to make a network connection via internet protocol, a common way of hooking this equipment up.
- She warned us in a well rehearsed sinister tone that we should not be alarmed by the medical equipment Fay had been hooked up to.
2 informal (Of two people) meet or form a relationship: he hooked up with a friend in Budapest...
- Within days, you'll be able to find photos, download songs and hook up with friends you met at the show.
- He apparently has no problem meeting people and hooking up with people, yet he says that as soon as you're back in town he wants to settle down and be with you and never be with another girl.
- I've been in two long serious relationships, and hooking up with handsome slightly drunk rich kids was exactly what the doctor ordered.
2.1Engage in or form a casual sexual relationship: hooking up with total strangers can be very dangerous...
- She was not about to help her creepy ex-boyfriend hook up with a girl two years too young for him.
- Whether in Venice or Hamburg, they have always hooked up - turning a mere journey into an " erotic pursuit ".
- I didn't feel guilty, or satisfied that I'd finally hooked up with my dream girl.
See parent entry: hook
hook-up2 
noun
1A connection or link, especially to mains electricity or for communications or broadcasting equipment: this weather-resistant product requires no electrical hook-up and provides light for up to 180 minutes on a single charge a complete household computer hook-up [as modifier]: installation and hook-up costs...
- The network would organise computer hook-ups, educational broadcasts, and the sharing of library resources among the participants.
- He testified in a court filled with 18th Century tradition, using high definition television and the latest in satellite hook-ups from Paris.
- This fight gave birth to the age of satellite TV hook-ups.
2 informal An instance of people meeting, communicating, or cooperating: he had an hour-long phone hook-up with his six Senate colleagues...
- The Elton hook-up on Face To Face, which will be his next single, is something Gary is especially proud of.
- The pop quartet have been talking up a potential hook-up with the candy-haired US rapper for weeks now.
- This afternoon Mr Howard held a phone hook-up with the State Premiers.
2.1A casual sexual encounter: he was tired of meaningless hook-ups...
- It takes a while to find that their hook-up the last time he was in town produced a son.
- Their hook-up wasn't about screwing with Don's head, or trying to lure him back in; it was sex.
- The article added that she has since been engaging in "meaningless hookups - at least four in the last month".
2.2A person with whom someone has a casual sexual encounter: she’s hurt that her hook-up didn’t even bother to stick around long enough to say good morning...
- He hasn't seen his son in months; he's divorced; his one-time hook-up looks like she's going to remain a one-time hook-up.
- Women choose their hookups using one set of criteria and a long term mate using another.
- And whilst some girls will be on Tinder to find a hook-up, most aren't.
