Hurry, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Hurried; p. pr. & vb. n. Hurrying.]
Etymology: [OE. horien; cf. OSw. hurra to whirl round, dial. Sw. hurr great haste, Dan. hurre to buzz, Icel. hurr hurly-burly, MHG. hurren to hurry, and E. hurr, whir to hurry; all prob. of imitative origin.]
1. To hasten; to impel to greater speed; to urge on. Impetuous lust hurries him on. South. They hurried him abroad a bark. Shak.
2. To impel to precipitate or thoughtless action; to urge to confused or irregular activity. And wild amazement hurries up and down The little number of your doubtful friends. Shak.
3. To cause to be done quickly.
Syn. -- To hasten; precipitate; expedite; quicken; accelerate; urge.
2 other Webster entries under this spelling
Hurry, v. i.
To move or act with haste; to proceed with celerity or precipitation; as, let us hurry. To hurry up, to make haste. [Colloq.]
Hurry, n.
The act of hurrying in motion or business; pressure; urgency; bustle; confusion. Ambition raises a tumult in the soul, it inflames the mind, and puts into a violent hurry of thought. Addison.
Syn. -- Haste; speed; dispatch. See Haste.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for hurry; he lists it under quicken.
Where he writes about it:
Hurry always indicates something of confusion. — from quicken
The hurried man forgets dignity, appearance, comfort, courtesy, everything but speed; he may forget something vital to the matter in hand; yet, because reckless haste may attain the great object of speed, hurry has come to be the colloquial and popular word for acting quickly. — from quicken