hank
/ˈheɪ̯ŋk/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.73 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
name
A diminutive of the male given name Henry.
noun
A ring or shackle that secures a staysail to its stay and allows the sail to glide smoothly up and down.
noun
Example Sentences
- "1681, E.R., The Experienced Farrier, London, p. 307, […] the best thing of all to stop bleeding at the Nose, is to take a Hank of Coventry-blew thread, and hang it cross a stick, and set one end of it on fire […] and let him receive the smoak up his Nostrils […]"
- "Cotton twist is spun here of 130 hanks to the pound. Each hank is 840 yards long […]"
- "[…] her hair was as straight as a hank of cotton."
- "The past year or two had brought knitting-needles into countenance for men, and he saw no reason why he should not put a few hanks of yarn into shape useful for himself."
- "He found a hank of clothesline on a counter."
- "Seldom doth a man fall into a Preſumptuous Sin, but vvhere the Devil hath got ſuch a hanke over him, […]"
Etymology
From Middle English hank, of Scandinavian/North Germanic origin; akin to Old Norse hǫnk (compare haki (“something bent”)), related to Proto-Germanic *hakô (“hook”). Akin to Old English hangian (“to hang”). First known use: 14th century.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: hank, -, *hakô
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈheɪ̯ŋk/
Usage
- Archaic
- Obsolete
- Transitive verb
- British usage