haystack

[ hey-stak ]

/ ˈheɪˌstæk /

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See synonyms for haystack on Thesaurus.com

noun

a stack of hay with a conical or ridged top, built up in the mowed field so as to prevent the accumulation of moisture and promote drying.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Also especially British, hayrick.

Origin of haystack

1425–75; late Middle English. See hay, stack

Words nearby haystack

hayride, Hays, hay-scented fern, hayseed, hay shock, haystack, hayward, haywire, Haywood, Hayworth, hazan

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use haystack in a sentence

Finding an endangered shark nursery in a vast ocean is like finding a needle in a haystack.
A hammerhead shark baby boom near Florida hints at a historic nursery|Lesley Evans Ogden|August 2, 2021|Science News
We really need domain experts in all different aspects of clinical care, and the science behind them, to help us find all the needles in haystacks.
It took a pandemic, but the US finally has (some) centralized medical data|Cat Ferguson|June 21, 2021|MIT Technology Review
The women hid in haystacks, which the soldiers speared with pitchforks and then set on fire.
Geling Yan’s twisty thriller ‘The Secret Talker’ begins with a creepy but alluring text|Mark Athitakis|May 28, 2021|Washington Post
The more people you have working on a problem, the more likely you are to find the needle in the haystack.
A guide to being an ethical online investigator|Tanya Basu|January 14, 2021|MIT Technology Review

Plus, we figured there’d probably be a few interesting needles in the haystack.
The Questionable Line Items of Illinois’ COVID-19 Spending|by Ash Ngu|October 29, 2020|ProPublica
But that trend also makes this GOTV mission largely needle-in-haystack.
In Florida, Romney Acolytes Knock on Doors, Beg for Votes|Winston Ross|November 5, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The judges have seemed serious about finding a legitimate hit act in the audition haystack.
Four Reasons American Idol Is Back From the Dead|Richard Rushfield|March 8, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Henry laid his brother down and stretched his aching arms, while Jess began to burrow into the haystack.
The Box-Car Children|Gertrude Chandler Warner
They climbed over two stone walls, got across a brook somehow with the heavy child, and arrived at the haystack.
The Box-Car Children|Gertrude Chandler Warner
And the children crept quietly to the noisy little brook not far from the haystack.
The Box-Car Children|Gertrude Chandler Warner
The man and the youth ask to sleep for the night upon a haystack, and stop in friendly talk with Mirèio.
Frdric Mistral|Charles Alfred Downer
To look for him in a big city like this will be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
From Farm to Fortune|Horatio Alger Jr.

British Dictionary definitions for haystack

haystack

hayrick (ˈheɪˌrɪk)

/ (ˈheɪˌstæk) /

noun

a large pile of hay, esp one built in the open air and covered with thatch

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with haystack

haystack

see needle in a haystack.

haystack

Origin of haystack

Words nearby haystack

Words related to haystack

How to use haystack in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for haystack

hayrick (ˈheɪˌrɪk)

Other Idioms and Phrases with haystack