Hedging a Bet Means Building a Fence Around It
A hedge is a row of shrubs forming a boundary. In finance, hedging means limiting risk, using the image of a protective barrier.
A hedge is a boundary of closely planted shrubs. The financial and conversational senses both take the image of enclosure: to *hedge a bet* is to place a second, opposing bet so your losses are fenced in, and a *hedge fund* is named for the same idea of limiting exposure. To hedge in conversation is to fence your statement about with qualifications. A very old English hedge can be dated by counting woody species: roughly one per hundred years.
- A row of shrubs. *A thick hedge.*
- To limit risk. *Hedge against inflation.*
- To avoid committing. *He hedged the question.*
- Hedge fund — an investment fund. *A hedge fund.*
- Hedgerow — a field boundary. *An ancient hedgerow.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | hedge | A garden hedge. |
| Plural | hedges | Two hedges. |
| Verb | hedge | Hedge your bets. |
| Noun | hedgerow | A hedgerow. |
| Old English | hecg | A hedge. |
- The hedge needs cutting.Garden.
- They hedged against currency risk.Finance.
- He hedged when asked directly.Evasion.
Dating a hedge
- Hooper's rule — count woody species in a thirty-yard stretch
- Each species suggests roughly a century of age
- A hedge with eight species may be eight hundred years old
- The rule is rough and works best in lowland England
- Ancient hedgerows are protected under British law
Old English *hecg*, from a Germanic root related to *haw* in *hawthorn*, the classic hedging shrub.
What does hedging a bet mean?
Placing an additional bet on the opposite outcome so that losses are limited whichever way it goes.
Can you tell a hedge's age?
Roughly. Counting woody species in a thirty-yard stretch gives an estimate of about a century per species.