Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

hickwall

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: hick-wall
IPA

20

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A lesser spotted woodpecker (Dryobates minor).

British usage

noun

A European green woodpecker (Picus viridis).

British usage

noun

A blue tit, Cyanistes caeruleus.

British usage; Archaic

Example Sentences

"[…]at Shenington for example, the churchwardens paid 4d for each Hickwall (green woodpecker) killed, but there is no record of any payment for weasels, which were worth 3d at Bodicote. One would like to know if Hickwalls were rare at Bodicote and weasels at Shenington, or if in fact they were not considered to be vermin in these parishes."
"Tomtit, Blue Tomtit, Nun, Blue-cap, Blue-bonnet, Billy-biter, Hickwall, Blue Mope. One of the most impudent of an impudent lot."

Etymology

From Middle English hyghwhele; also highwale (1500s) or highawe (1600s). Rarely attested before the sixteenth century, making the original form difficult to trace. Probably imitative of the bird's cry; compare yaffle (“green woodpecker”). Possibly influenced by witwall, woodwall.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: hyghwhele

Usage

British usage
Archaic

Inflected Forms

hickwalls (plural) hickway (alternative)

Questions

What does hickwall mean?: A lesser spotted woodpecker (Dryobates minor).
Where does hickwall come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce hickwall

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