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A hiccup was a noise caused by a sudden expulsion of air from the lungs due to a spasm of the diaphragm.

In 2372, while bragging to Danara Pel about his abilities as a doctor, The Doctor sarcastically called his curing of Neelix's acute case of the hiccups his "greatest feat of medical prowess". (VOY: "Lifesigns")

Colloquially, it could also refer to a minor blip in an otherwise normal situation. In 2364, the captain of the USS Lalo referred to a time distortion as a hiccup. Data defined it as "a spasmodic inhalation with closure of the glottis, accompanied by a peculiar sound". He further mentioned that he considered it to be an incorrect analogy, saying, "If we were to continue this analogy to a body function, what occurred would be best represented by a – ", but then Picard cut him off before he could finish. (TNG: "We'll Always Have Paris")

In 2365, Commander William T. Riker referred to an odd sensor reading as a hiccup, to the android's initial confusion. (TNG: "Contagion")

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