on the hop

English

(slang, Ireland) Playing truant from school.
- 1995, G. H. Fagan, Culture, Politics and Irish School Dropouts, page 26:
  Judy: A couple of times I went on the hop.
Spontaneous; unplanned.
- 2022 February 21, Shaun Walker, “Putin’s absurd, angry spectacle will be a turning point in his long reign”, in The Guardian‎^[1], →ISSN:
  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.
Unprepared; unready and unable to deal with something.
- 1951, C. S. Lewis, Prince Caspian the Return to Narnia:
  "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. […] "
- 1998 October 18, David Connett, John Hooper, Peter Beaumont, “Pinochet arrested in London”, in The Guardian‎^[2], →ISSN:
  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.