hallo

[ huh-loh ]

/ həˈloʊ /

interjection

(used to call or answer someone, or to incite dogs in hunting.)

noun, plural hal·los.

the cry “hallo!”

a shout of exultation.

verb (used without object), hal·loed, hal·lo·ing.

to call with a loud voice; shout; cry, as after hunting dogs.

verb (used with object), hal·loed, hal·lo·ing.

to incite or chase (something) with shouts and cries of “hallo!”

to cry “hallo” to (someone).

to shout (something).

Nearby words

Also halloa, halloo, hallow, hillo, hilloa, hullo, hulloo.

Origin of hallo

1560–70; variant of hollo, itself variant of earlier holla < Middle French hola, equivalent to ho ahoy + la there

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hallo

“Hallo,” he exclaimed; only he could not stop a moment to ask if she was hurt.
Chance|Joseph Conrad
A miniature figure is introduced, who is endeavouring to arrest the sleeper's attention—'Hallo, neighbour!
Rowlandson the Caricaturist. First Volume|Joseph Grego
Greeting his sister-in-law amiably he called out: "Hallo, Virgie, we're in here!"
Bought and Paid For|Arthur Hornblow
But I do know, for instance, that Hallo has sent supplies of various sorts to particular places.
Under Fire For Servia|Colonel James Fiske

No; if you're not here, I'll hallo when we're 'most ready to start.
Grandmother Elsie|Martha Finley

British Dictionary definitions for hallo

hallo

/ (həˈləʊ) /

sentence substitute, noun

a variant spelling of hello

sentence substitute, noun, verb

a variant spelling of halloo

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for hallo

hallo

shout to call attention, 1781, earlier hollo, holla (see hello). Halow as a shipman's cry to incite effort is from mid-15c.; Halloo as a verb, "to pursue with shouts, to shout in the chase," from late 14c. Cf. also harou, cry of distress, late 13c., from French.