A contrapuntal rhythmic technique, used especially in plainsong (though this did not always go over well with authorities, this sort of dressing things up to make them more interesting). The effect, depending on the performance, could be a smooth phrase or a back-and-forth hopping about. As a technique, it has been revived in, for ex, folk music and drumline music. The term has been around since the late 13th century, from Middle English hoket, hitch, from Middle French hocquet, hiccup, probably onomatopoetic.
---L.
