Word
holt
Phoneticsholt
US/ˈhoʊɫt/
UK/hˈəʊlt/
Definition
n. a small group of trees or a little forest on a hill.
n. a small wood, grove, or copse; often used in poetry or older literature.
Examples
“The otter swam back to its holt under the riverbank.”
“Wildlife photographers spent weeks waiting near the river, hoping to see the cubs emerge from the holt.”
“Hidden beneath the tangled roots of an ancient willow, the holt provided a secure sanctuary for the otter family away from the eyes of predators.”
Examples
simple
“The otter swam back to its holt under the riverbank.”
contextual
“Wildlife photographers spent weeks waiting near the river, hoping to see the cubs emerge from the holt.”
complex
“Hidden beneath the tangled roots of an ancient willow, the holt provided a secure sanctuary for the otter family away from the eyes of predators.”
Teaching tip
In modern English, this sense survives almost exclusively in place names and surnames.
Etymology
English, Dutch, north German, Norwegian and Danish surname, all from the noun holt (“copse, woodland”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/holt