Hailstone
/ˈheɪl.stoʊn/noun
A small pellet of ice that falls from thunderclouds.
Did you know?English hailstone is a transparent compound, but its first element goes back to Proto-Germanic *kailaz, the same ancient root behind words for cold and frost in several Germanic languages.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gel-
“to be cold, to freeze”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*hailaz
“healthy, whole; later associated with hail and frost in Germanic branches”
Old English
OE
hægl
“hail”
Old English
OE
stān
“stone, rock”
Middle English
ME
hail-ston
“a pellet of hail”
Modern English
English
hailstone
“a small lump of ice falling from the sky”