Hail
/heɪl/noun
A form of precipitation consisting of balls or irregular lumps of ice.
Did you know?The word 'hail' is related to the Old Norse 'heill', which meant 'health' or 'prosperity', connecting it to ancient rituals of blessing and protection from storms.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gʰei-
“to call, to shout, to greet, to invoke”
Old English
Old English
hǣl
“health, prosperity, a salutation or expression of greeting”
Old Norse
Old Norse
heill
“health, blessing; used in greetings and rituals”
Middle English
Middle English
hail
“to greet or salute, also used for precipitation in a more literal sense”
Modern English
English
hail
“precipitation of ice pellets, while retaining the greeting connotation in certain contexts.”