hail Hear it!

hail1 definition

hail (hāl)

transitive verb

  1. to welcome, greet, etc. with or as with cheers; acclaim
  2. to name by way of tribute; salute as they hailed him their leader
  3. to call out to or signal to, as in summoning or greeting to hail a taxi

Etymology: ME hailen, to salute, greet < hail, heil < ON heill, whole, sound, akin to OE hal (see hale, whole): used as a salutation

noun

  1. the act of hailing or greeting
  2. the distance that a shout will carry within hail

interjection

used to signify tribute, greeting, etc.

Related Forms:

hail Idioms

hail fellow well met

very sociable or friendly to everyone, esp. in a superficial manner
also hail fellow or hail-fellow

hail from

to be from; come from (one's birthplace or established residence)
hail2 definition

hail (hāl)

noun

  1. rounded pieces of ice that are larger than 5 mm (.2 in) and sometimes fall during thunderstorms; frozen raindrops; hailstones
  2. a falling, showering, etc. of hail, or in the manner of hail a hail of bullets

Etymology: ME haile < OE hægel, var. of hagol, akin to Ger hagel < IE base *kaghlo-, small pebble > Gr kachlēx

intransitive verb

to drop or pour down hail: usually in an impersonal construction it is hailing

Etymology: ME hailen < OE hagalian

transitive verb

to shower, hurl, pour, etc. violently in the manner of hail: often with on or upon to hail curses on someone

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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