Definition of "hackney" []

• A horse of a breed developed in England, having a gait characterized by pronounced flexion of the knee. (noun)
• A trotting horse suited for routine riding or driving; a hack. (noun)
• A coach or carriage for hire. (noun)
• To cause to become banal and trite through overuse. (verb-transitive)
• To hire out; let. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "When those involved were expelled after a huge public row over all sorts of things to do with how the party in hackney was run (at the time the press described the expellees as the good guys - they weren't) then it became the party they joined (ie the Lib Dems) who took it up."
• "To that end I called a hackney-coach, not greatly caring, I confess it, to be seen in broad daylight in London streets with such an astonishing pair of guys as poor old Ruffiano and his friend."
• "I was not content to let him go: But presently we called a hackney-coach, and myself and him, and major Tasker went, and carried that money to Mr. Tryon."