# Difference between a hookah and a bong **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 25, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411 "2009-02-25T19:53:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shinna_Minna_Ma)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/1 "2009-02-25T19:53:41Z")
Chalk this up to my naivete, but what is the difference between a hookah and a bong? –SMM ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/2 "2009-02-25T19:58:18Z")
We always called a multi-participant device a hookah. Multiple hoses coming off the center unit. A bong is a one-man operation. ---
**Author:** ![New\_Beginning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@New\_Beginning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/New_Beginning)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/3 "2009-02-25T19:59:05Z")
And a bong typically dose not have any sort of hose (one solid piece apart from the bowl). ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/4 "2009-02-25T20:00:24Z")
> **[Hookah](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookah)** > > A hookah (Hindustani: حُقّہ (Nastaleeq), हुक़्क़ा (Devanagari), IPA: \[ˈɦʊqːa\]; also see other names), shisha, or waterpipe is a single- or multi-stemmed instrument for heating or vaporizing and then smoking either tobacco, flavored tobacco (often muʽassel), or sometimes cannabis, hashish and opium. The smoke is passed through a water basin—often glass-based—before inhalation. > The major health risks of smoking tobacco, cannabis, opium and other drugs through a hookah include exposure to toxic ... > **[Bong](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bong)** > > A bong (also known as a water pipe) is a filtration device generally used for smoking cannabis, tobacco, or other herbal substances. In the bong shown in the photo, the smoke flows from the lower port on the left to the upper port on the right. > In construction and function, a bong is similar to a hookah, except smaller and especially more portable. A bong may be constructed from any air- and water-tight vessel by adding a bowl and stem apparatus (or slide) which guides air downward to below w... ---
**Author:** ![Ol\_Gaffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Ol\_Gaffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_Gaffer)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/5 "2009-02-25T20:00:29Z")
Also, any store which sells smoking accessories will not sell you a bong…they will, however, happily sell you a water pipe. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/6 "2009-02-25T20:11:02Z")
[Bongs](http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa140/zamer1/?action=view¤t=bongs.jpg) [Hookahs](http://schmoffly.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/hookah-sale.jpg) For a bong, you draw the smoke right from the top of the tube and only one person smokes at a time. For a hookah you have one or more hoses (usually more) tapping into the chamber and as many people can smoke at one time as there are hoses. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2009, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/7 "2009-02-26T01:13:44Z")
Generally speaking, a bong has the bowl in the bottom on the side (and you inhale from the top), and is lit with a lighter. A hookah has the bowl on top and is kept lit with charcoal (and you inhale with a hose or [usually] hoses). Also, perhaps more significantly, a bong is usually used for pot while a hookah is usually used for flavored tobacco. ETA: A bong is also cleared after each hit, while a hookah cycles the smoke continuously. ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f08c70/32.png) [@Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Brother_Walker)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2009, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/8 "2009-02-26T07:52:08Z")
“Miss, if you call it a bong one more time, I’m going to have to ask you to leave the store.” -said to a friend of mine during some pre-holiday shopping. She shut up right quick and her hubby did the rest of the talking and closed the deal on the ‘water pipe’ purchase. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2009, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/9 "2009-02-26T11:54:25Z")
Also, a bong has a carburetor; usually a small hole that the smoker covers while lighting the weed and then releases to allow the smoke to rush in one big moment. A hookah does not have a carburetor. ETA: I see someone else also said this upthread. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/10 "2009-02-26T15:06:24Z")
And, to be more precise, sometimes the bowl covers the carburetor and its stem is pulled in order to release the carb. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2009, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/11 "2009-02-26T15:22:25Z")
> [@Santo\_Rugger](#): > > Generally speaking, a bong has the bowl in the bottom on the side (and you inhale from the top), and is lit with a lighter. A hookah has the bowl on top and is kept lit with charcoal (and you inhale with a hose or [usually] hoses). > > Also, perhaps more significantly, a bong is usually used for pot while a hookah is usually used for flavored tobacco. > > ETA: A bong is also cleared after each hit, while a hookah cycles the smoke continuously. The coals may be traditional, but I’ve smoked many a hookah and never used coals. Oh…and yeah…it was _definitely_ flavored tobacco. Definitely.😉 ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2009, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-a-hookah-and-a-bong/487411/12 "2009-02-26T19:15:15Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > The coals may be traditional, but I’ve smoked many a hookah and never used coals. > > Oh…and yeah…it was _definitely_ flavored tobacco. Definitely.😉 To be fair, you were actually using a hookah shaped bong. 😛 But, on a serious note, if I were smoking pot with a hookah (which I wouldn’t), I wouldn’t use coals, either. It’d be a waste.