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• hull
  hull

  noun

  the husk, shell, or outer covering of a seed or fruit.
• Hull
  Hull

  noun

  Bobby Robert Marvin Hull, 1939–2023, Canadian ice-hockey player, known as “the Golden Jet”: Hockey Hall of Fame 1983.

hull

¹ American  

[huhl] / hʌl /

noun

1. the husk, shell, or outer covering of a seed or fruit.

   Synonyms:

   shuck, rind, peel, pod, skin

2. the calyx of certain fruits, as the strawberry.

3. any covering or envelope.

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verb (used with object)

1. to remove the hull of.

2. Midland U.S. to shell (peas or beans).

hull ² American  

[huhl] / hʌl /

noun

1. the hollow, lowermost portion of a ship, floating partially submerged and supporting the remainder of the ship.

2. Aeronautics.

   1. the boatlike fuselage of a flying boat on which the plane lands or takes off.

   2. the cigar-shaped arrangement of girders enclosing the gasbag of a rigid dirigible.

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verb (used with object)

1. to pierce (the hull of a ship), especially below the water line.

verb (used without object)

1. to drift without power or sails.

idioms

1. hull down, (of a ship) sufficiently far away, or below the horizon, that the hull is invisible.

2. hull up, (of a ship) sufficiently near, or above the horizon, that the hull is visible.

Hull ³ American  

[huhl] / hʌl /

noun

1. Bobby Robert Marvin Hull, 1939–2023, Canadian ice-hockey player, known as “the Golden Jet”: Hockey Hall of Fame 1983.

2. Cordell 1871–1955, U.S. secretary of state 1933–44, known as “the Father of the United Nations”: Nobel Peace Prize 1945.

3. William, 1753–1825, U.S. general, court-martialed and sentenced to death after surrendering a U.S. fort to the British during the War of 1812: pardoned by President Madison.

4. Official Name Kingston-upon-Hull.  a seaport in Humberside, in eastern England, on the Humber River.

5. a city in southeastern Canada, on the Ottawa River opposite Ottawa.

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hull ¹ British  

/ hʌl /

noun

1. the main body of a vessel, tank, flying boat, etc

2. the shell or pod of peas or beans; the outer covering of any fruit or seed; husk

3. the persistent calyx at the base of a strawberry, raspberry, or similar fruit

4. the outer casing of a missile, rocket, etc

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verb

1. to remove the hulls from (fruit or seeds)

2. (tr) to pierce the hull of (a vessel, tank, etc)

Hull ² British  

/ hʌl /

noun

1. a city and port in NE England, in Kingston upon Hull unitary authority, East Riding of Yorkshire: fishing, food processing; two universities. Pop: 301 416 (2001). Official name: Kingston upon Hull

2. a city in SE Canada, in SW Quebec on the River Ottawa: a centre of the timber trade and associated industries. Pop: 66 246 (2001)

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Hull ³ British  

/ hʌl /

noun

1. Cordell. 1871–1955, US statesman; secretary of state (1933–44). He helped to found the U.N.: Nobel peace prize 1945

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hull Scientific  

/ hŭl /

1. The dry outer covering of a fruit, seed, or nut; a husk.

2. The enlarged calyx of a fruit, such as a strawberry, that is usually green and easily detached.

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Other Word Forms

• huller
  noun
• hull-less
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of hull¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English hulu “husk, pod”; akin to Old English helan “to cover, hide,” Latin cēlāre “to hide, conceal,” Greek kalýptein “to cover up” ( see apocalypse); see conceal, hell

Origin of hull²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; special use of hull ¹

Explanation

A sailor who is far out at sea has to hope that the hull of her boat is watertight. The hull of a boat or a ship is its outer body. A boat's hull can be made of wood, metal, or fiberglass — it gives a boat or ship its shape and keeps water out. Another kind of hull is the outer covering of a seed. Corn, for example, has a hull that is removed when you husk it and reveal the kernels. This kind of hull is thought to be the root of the nautical hull, probably based on the similarity between a ship's hull and an open pea pod.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hull Hull

This study is the first to combine molecular and pollen analysis to identify the ship's coatings and reconstruct the vegetation present when those materials were produced and applied to the hull.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026

Other remnants of World War Two have appeared in the Danube as of recent, including a broken-up hull near Prahovo in Serbia.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

The outboard horsepower explosion started about 20 years ago, when bigger boats typically had engines set within the hull.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

Some passengers were frantically clinging to the hull of the partially submerged vessel, he said, as rescuers administered CPR to a man on a San Francisco police boat.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

I thought about what Vern’s boat looked like from below, imagining the growing distance between the floor of the bay and the boat’s hull.

From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen

Injuries played a part in limiting further first-team opportunities, and between 2022 and 2024 Delap spent time on loan in the Championship with Stoke, Preston North End and Hull City.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

They are also entitled to say United don't seem to be able to defend solidly against opponents who play with wing-backs, as AC Milan did last week and Hull on Saturday.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

At the time of writing, United had just lost 2-0 to Hull City.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

Newly-promoted Hull City stunned Manchester United on their return to the Premier League with two first-half goals giving them victory.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

In March he gave a talk at Hull House, a reform settlement founded by Jane Addams, “Saint Jane.”

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

Related Words

• frame
• skin