heck

¹ American  

[hek] / hɛk /

interjection

1. (used as a mild expression of annoyance, rejection, disgust, etc.).

   What the heck do you care?

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noun

1. something remarkable of its kind (usually used in the phraseheck of a ).

   That was a heck of an impressive speech. Have one heck of a good time.

idioms

1. as heck (used as a mild intensifier).

   I say he's guilty as heck.

heck ² American  

[hek] / hɛk /

noun

1. a comblike attachment on a loom, for guiding the warp threads as they are dressed for the warp beam.

2. a device that guides yarn onto the bobbin of a spinning wheel.

3. a gridlike arrangement of glass or metal rods below the hooks on a Jacquard loom, used for lifting all harness eyes equally or evenly.

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heck ¹ British  

/ hɛk /

interjection

1. a mild exclamation of surprise, irritation, etc

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heck ² British  

/ hɛk /

noun

1. dialect a frame for obstructing the passage of fish in a river

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Etymology

Origin of heck¹

First recorded in 1850–55; euphemistic alteration of hell

Origin of heck²

1300–50; Middle English hekke, Old English hecc, variant of hæcc hatch ²

Example Sentences

Heck, bald eagles may be even more impressive when sitting on the ground, where they approach heights of 3 feet or more—or about as tall as a human toddler.

From Slate

She played the heck out of that role.

From Los Angeles Times

With a $3-million prize pool, this weekend's Ubisoft-organised invitational event in Paris for top teams is "a heck of a signal" that "shows we're capable of packing the Adidas Arena," Deniele said.

From Barron's

“I’ve fought for this country, and I’m sure as heck not going to give up on it,” Sullivan said.

From Salon

This will be one heck of a story for her first day of preschool.

From Literature