hey

American  

[hey] / heɪ /

interjection

1. (used as an exclamation to call attention or to express pleasure, surprise, bewilderment, etc.)

2. Informal. hello: used as a greeting.

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hey British  

/ heɪ /

interjection

1. an expression indicating surprise, dismay, discovery, etc, or calling for another's attention

2. an exclamation used for emphasis at the end of a statement, or alone to seek repetition or confirmation of another person's statement

3. an exclamation used by conjurors to herald the climax of a trick

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Etymology

Origin of hey

1150–1200; Middle English hei

Example Sentences

But hey, look on the bright side: You may not be a billionaire, but you’re still a one-percenter — and a very wealthy one-percenter at that.

From MarketWatch

Hey, it’s cheaper than a new phone!

From The Wall Street Journal

This was the Shoals period when Wilson Pickett recorded his epic version of “Hey Jude,” the Rolling Stones wrote and recorded “Wild Horses,” Paul Simon recorded his “There Goes Rhymin’ Simon” LP, Bobbie Gentry waxed her hit “Fancy,” and Willie Nelson his “Phases and Stages” theme album.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Having the same guy with me throughout the playoffs in my ear saying, ‘Hey we think it’s going to be this coverage’ is a really big deal for us,” Chambliss said.

From The Wall Street Journal

And then you get there on the day and how do I say, “Hey, all that stuff we did, this is actually happening over here. Let’s move everything over here”? I felt the hardest thing was being OK with wasting money if it was the right thing to do at that moment.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• cry
• exclamation
• expletive
• insertion
• interpolation
• interposition
• shout