Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

wild hunt

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.32 in modern English

Syllables: wild hunt
IPA

15

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

1

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A spectral hunting party of riders and hounds, often led by a supernatural huntsman, that sweeps noisily through the sky or countryside at night or during storms, especially in winter; traditionally lacking a visible quarry and regarded as an omen of death or disaster.

Example Sentences

"Before the Venusberg — according to the preface to the Heldenbuch — sits the trusty Eckhard, and warns people; as he also rides and warns before the Wild Hunt."
"Mr. Kelly (Indo-European Tradition) very ably and poetically resolves all the various superstitions of this Wild Hunt into figurative descriptions of natural phenomena, but Mr. Yarrell, the distinguished naturalist, reduces the cries of the Gabriel Hounds into the whistling of the Bean Goose, Anser Segetum, as the flocks are flying southward in the night, migrating from Scandinavia."
"In Germanic myth Woden, in common with his Nordic counterpart, was the leader of the spooky Wild Hunt which rides through the midwinter sky collecting the souls of the dead."
"Throughout the Continent it was originally she who led the dread and awesome Wild Hunt through the thick forest and the mid-night snows, leading ghosts, wolves, witches and elves."
"The night grew lighter as we welcomed the Aelfkin and Frey to join us, the Mothers we honoured and speeches made on Woden and the Wild Hunt."

Etymology

Calque of German Wilde Jagd.

Inflected Forms

Wild Hunts (plural)

Questions

What does wild hunt mean?: A spectral hunting party of riders and hounds, often led by a supernatural huntsman, that sweeps noisily through the sky or countryside at night or during storms, especially in winter; traditionally lacking a visible quarry and regarded as an omen of death or disaster.
Where does wild hunt come from?: Calque of German Wilde Jagd.

How to pronounce wild hunt

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “wild hunt”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “wild hunt”.
Repeat and practice — Say “wild hunt” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.