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holla

[hol-uh]
interjection
  1. (used as an informal greeting.)
  2. (an informal exclamation of enthusiasm, joy, etc.)
  3. (used especially during a hunt) hallo.
  4. Obsolete. cease! halt!
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Also hol·lo [hol-oh] /ˈhɒl oʊ/.

Origin of holla

1500–50; < Middle French hola, equivalent to ho ‘ahoy’ + la ‘there’
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for holla

Historical Examples

  • At the moment I thought I heard a holla, but I could not be sure.

    Tom Cringle's Log

    Michael Scott

  • Here, Tommy, catch hold of him t'other side before he can holla.

  • Cry ‘holla’ to thy tongue, I prithee; it curvets unseasonably.

    The Missourian

    Eugene P. (Eugene Percy) Lyle

  • They drew up in response to Gabriel's holla, and he climbed into the waggon.

    Gabriel Tolliver

    Joel Chandler Harris

  • I do not include Mrs. Morritt and you, because we are much nearer neighbors, and within a whoop and a holla in comparison.

Word Origin and History for holla

as a command to "stop, cease," 1520s, from French holà (15c.). As a command to get attention, from 1580s. As an urban slang form of holler (v.) and meaning "greet, shout out to," it was in use by 2003.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper