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hole

noun · verb

Simple meaning

An opening into or through something.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

hohl
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈhoʊl

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. An opening into or through something

  2. An opening deliberately made in or through something

  3. An opening that goes all the way through a solid body, a fabric, etc.; a perforation; a rent.

  4. A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit; a dent; a depression; a fissure.

  5. heading

    In games.

  6. In the game of fives, part of the floor of the court between the step and the pepperbox.

verb

  1. transitiveby extension

    To destroy.

  2. transitive

    To make holes in (an object or surface).

  3. transitive

    To cut, dig, or bore a hole or holes in.

  4. Hit the ball into the hole

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A2 · Elementary
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: An opening into or through something

Used this way, hole is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Subsurface

big holelarge hole

Other combinations

woods holewater holedrill holesmall holeround holedeep hole

Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.

Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • trap

    A covering over a hole or opening.

  • jam

    Either of the vertical components that form the side of an opening in a wall, such as that of a door frame, window….

  • maw

    Any large, insatiable or perilous opening.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • hole cardnounCompound term

    Any assets that are concealed until they can be used advantageously.

  • hole-in-the-wallnounCompound term

    A small unpretentious out-of-the-way place.

  • hole outverbCompound term

    Hit the ball into the hole.

  • hole upverbCompound term

    Remain secluded or in hiding.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.