on the hop

Definitions

1. Playing truant from school.
   Ireland, slang
2. Spontaneous; unplanned.
3. Unprepared; unready and unable to deal with something.

Examples

“Judy: A couple of times I went on the hop.”

“It is hard to tell⟳ whether or not Putin had decided his plan⟳ for Ukraine months ago, or whether he has been making plans on the hop, but it was certainly clear that the decision on recognition had been taken well before this strange, stage-managed event.”

“"Tough," said Peter. "Very tough. I have⟳ a chance if I can keep⟳ him on the hop till his weight and short wind come⟳ against him—in this hot sun too. To tell⟳ the truth, I haven't much chance else. […]"”

“His sudden arrest caught many on the hop, including Pinochet's old ideological enemy, Cuba's Fidel Castro. "Is it true? Is it confirmed?" the 72-year-old Communist leader asked in Oporto.”

CEFR level