hill English · revision 2990

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 1000, Ælfric|origins=ine-pro *kel-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /hɪl/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|hil]], hulle,^(Barnhart 1988) [[inh|ang|hyll]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[gem-pro|*hulniz|alt=*hulni-]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) the source also of Middle Dutch hille and Low German hull “hill”, and related to Old Norse hallr “stone”, Gothic hallus “rock” and Old Norse holmr “islet”.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) It is from [[ine-pro|*kel-|t=to be prominent; hill]],^(Etymonline) as are Latin collis “hill”, Greek kolōnós and Lithuanian kálnas.^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024)^(NODE 1998) The verb is from the noun.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A natural elevation of the earth's surface: about 1000, in Ælfric.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) Middle English hulle, in south-western and Midland dialect, is from about 1175.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The word formerly included mountains.^(Etymonline) The OED notes that in Britain heights under about 2,000 feet are generally called hills, though in India ranges of 5,000 or even 10,000 feet are called hills beside the Himalayas.^(Etymonline) A heap or mound of earth or sand is from 1297,^(OED 1989) and a mound around a plant from 1572.^(OED 1989) ''Over the hill'', “past one's prime”, is from 1950.^(OED 1989) ''Hilly'' and ''hillock'' are from the 14th century.^(Hoad 1986) The verb, “to cover with soil in a hill”, is from the 1570s.^(Etymonline) In American use ''the Hill'' is Capitol Hill, the US Congress.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1000 – a hill.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1297 – a heap or mound.^(OED 1989)

+ * 14th century – ''hilly'', ''hillock''.^(Hoad 1986)

+ * 1570s – verb, to heap soil round.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1950 – ''over the hill''.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A natural raised area of land, smaller than a [[mountain]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A small heap or [[mound]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A slope, especially of a road.^(AHD)

+ # ''the Hill'': [[Capitol Hill]], the US Congress.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To form into a heap; to cover a plant with a mound of soil.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[hiller]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[holm]]

+ * [[column]]

+ * [[culminate]]

+ * [[hillock]]

+ * [[hilly]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In dialect, ''hill'' or ''hull'' also meant “to cover”, as of a roof or bedclothes;^(Wright 1898) Merriam-Webster takes this verb from Old Norse hylja “to hide, cover”, a different word.^(MWU 2024)^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}