hillbilly
Americannoun
plural
hillbilliesadjective
noun
-
derogatory an unsophisticated person, esp from the mountainous areas in the southeastern US
-
another name for country and western
Sensitive Note
Hillbilly is often used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting, implying that a person who lives far away from a town or city lacks culture or education. However, this term is also used in a humorous way without intent to offend, and it is sometimes a positive term of self-reference.
Etymology
Origin of hillbilly
Compare meaning
How does hillbilly compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A hillbilly is a particularly unworldly country person. If you grew up in a remote rural area, visiting a big city for the first time can make you feel a bit like a hillbilly. It's not nice to call someone a hillbilly — it's an insult, implying stupidity or at least a profound lack of sophistication. You might picture a hillbilly wearing overalls and chewing tobacco, uneducated and inexperienced. Today the word includes anyone who seems to fit this stereotype, but originally it meant specifically "southern Appalachian U.S. resident," from the hilly terrain in that area and the first name Billy.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Stewart didn’t go for polyester suits or arenas, preferring the rough and rowdy “skull orchards” around Fort Pierce where he could alternate between hillbilly rock and progressive bluegrass.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026
However, Vance has also described himself as a "Scots-Irish hillbilly at heart" in the past, with his ancestors having moved to the Appalachian region in the US more than three centuries ago.
From BBC • Aug. 13, 2025
The music he made came from Mexico, and it came from Los Angeles, where 1940s Spanish-language swing tunes, Black doo-wop sounds and hillbilly guitar-plucking were mashed together in a molcajete y tejolote.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 2, 2025
He’s a hillbilly, an elegist, and a Yale Law School graduate.
From Slate • Mar. 5, 2025
It was on the second album, and it was the only slow song they ever did; it sounded almost country, probably from Henry’s brief infatuation with hillbilly punk.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
