hank

CEFRC2

/ˈhæŋk/

noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A coil or bundle of hair, thread, or rope.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A coil or loop of something, especially twine, yarn, or rope.

Examples

  • Bob and Hank are duking it out in the alley behind the bar.

  • 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...

At a glance

Sits at C2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5

Also pronounced

  • [ˈheɪ̯ŋk] ~ /ˈhɛ̃ŋk/
  • /ˈheɪ̯ŋk/

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A diminutive of the male given name Hankin (a medieval form of John).

  2. A ring or shackle that secures a staysail to its stay and allows the sail to glide smoothly up and down.

  3. Doubt, difficulty.

More examples

In context

  • […] her hair was as straight as a hank of cotton.

  • Cotton twist is spun here of 130 hanks to the pound. Each hank is 840 yards long […]

  • He found a hank of clothesline on a counter.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

She bought a blank of yarn to knit a warm scarf.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

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.