Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense holes, present participle holing, past tense, past participle holed
1. countable noun
A hole is a hollow space in something solid, with an opening on one side.
He took a shovel, dug a hole, and buried his once-prized possessions.
The builders had cut holes into the soft stone to support the ends of the beams.
...a 60ft hole.
Synonyms: cavity, depression, pit, hollow More Synonyms of hole
2. countable noun
A hole is an opening in something that goes right through it.
These tiresome creatures eat holes in the leaves. [+ in]
Armed robbers broke into the jeweller's through a hole in the wall.
...kids with holes in the knees of their jeans. [+ in]
Synonyms: opening, split, crack, break More Synonyms of hole
3. countable noun
A hole is the home or hiding place of a mouse, rabbit, or other small animal.
...a rabbit hole.
Synonyms: burrow, nest, den, earth More Synonyms of hole
4. countable noun
A holein a law, theory, or argument is a fault or weakness that it has.
There were some holes in that theory, some unanswered questions. [+ in]
Synonyms: fault, error, flaw, defect More Synonyms of hole
5. countable noun [usually adjective NOUN]
If you refer to a place as a hole, you are emphasizing that you think it is very unpleasant.
[informal, disapproval]
Why don't you leave this awful hole and come to live with me?
Synonyms: hovel, dump [informal], dive [slang], slum More Synonyms of hole
6. countable noun
A hole is also one of the nine or eighteen sections of a golf course.
I played nine holes with Gary today.
7. countable noun
A hole is one of the places on a golf course that the ball must drop into, usually marked by a flag.
8. verb
If you hole in a game of golf, you hit the ball so that it goes into the hole.
He holed from nine feet at the 18th. [VERB]
Frost holed a bunker shot from 50 feet to snatch the title by one stroke. [VERB noun]
9. verb [usually passive]
If something such as a building or ship is holed, holes are made in it by guns or other weapons.
[mainly British]
Blocks of flats have been holed and some shells have fallen within the historic ramparts. [beVERB-ed]
10.
See need sth/sb like a hole in the head
11.
See in a hole
12.
See a hole in one
13.
See pick holes
Phrasal verbs:
See hole up
More Synonyms of hole
hole in British English
(həʊl)
noun
1.
an area hollowed out in a solid
2.
an opening made in or through something
3.
an animal's hiding place or burrow
4. informal
an unattractive place, such as a town or a dwelling
5. informal
a cell or dungeon
6. US informal
a small anchorage
7.
a fault (esp in the phrase pick holes in)
8. slang
a difficult and embarrassing situation
9.
the cavity in various games into which the ball must be thrust
10. (on a golf course)
a.
the cup on each of the greens
b.
each of the divisions of a course (usually 18) represented by the distance between the tee and a green
c.
the score made in striking the ball from the tee into the hole
11. physics
a.
a vacancy in a nearly full band of quantum states of electrons in a semiconductor or an insulator. Under the action of an electric field holes behave as carriers of positive charge
b.
(as modifier)
hole current
c.
a vacancy in the nearly full continuum of quantum states of negative energy of fermions. A hole appears as the antiparticle of the fermion
12. in holes
13. in the hole
14. make a hole in
verb
15.
to make a hole or holes in (something)
16. (whenintr, often foll by out) golf
to hit (the ball) into the hole
Word origin
Old English hol; related to Gothic hulundi, German Höhle, Old Norse hylr pool, Latin caulis hollow stem; see hollow
hole in American English
(hoʊl)
noun
1.
a hollow or hollowed-out place; cavity
; specif.,
a.
an excavation or pit
b. US
a small bay or inlet; cove
often in place names
c.
a pool or deep, relatively wide place in a stream
a swimming hole
d.
an animal's burrow or lair; den
2.
a small, dingy, squalid place; any dirty, badly lighted room, house, etc.
3.
a.
an opening in or through anything; break; gap
a hole in the wall
b.
a tear or rent, or a place where fabric is worn away, as in a garment
4.
a flaw; fault; blemish; defect
holes in an argument
5. Informal
an embarrassing situation or position; predicament
6. Golf
a.
a small, cylindrical cup sunk into a green, into which a ball is to be hit
b.
any of the distinct sections of a course, including the tee, the fairway, and the green
played the fifth hole in par
7. Physics and Electronics
a vacancy in a semiconductor, crystal, etc. left by the loss or absence of an electron: in some semiconductors it acts as a carrier of a positive electriccharge
verb transitiveWord forms: holed or ˈholing
8.
to make a hole or holes in
9.
to put, hit, or drive into a hole
10.
to create by making a hole
to hole a tunnel through a mountain
Idioms:
burn a hole in someone's pocket
hole high
hole in one
hole out
hole up
in the hole
make a hole in
pick holes in
the hole
SYNONYMY NOTE: hole is the general word for an open space in a thing and may suggest a depression ina surface or an opening from surface to surface [a hole in the ground, a hole in a sock]; hollow basically suggests an empty space within a solid body, whether or not it extendsto the surface, but it may also be applied to a depressed place in a surface [a wooded hollow]; cavity, the Latin-derived equivalent of , hollow, has special application in formal and scientific usage [the thoracic cavity]; an excavation is a hollow made in or through ground by digging [the excavations at Pompeii]
Word origin
ME < OE hol, orig. neut. of adj. holh, hollow, akin to Ger hohl < IE base *kaul-, *kul-, hollow, hollow stalk > L caulis, Gr kaulos, stalk
More idioms containing
hole
someone needs something like a hole in the head
in a hole
a hole card
burn a hole in your pocket
blow a hole in something
be in the hole
have an ace in the hole
a square peg in a round hole
Examples of 'hole' in a sentence
hole
Yet what did he expect when his own story was full of holes.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Cut a small hole in each one and stuff with half an olive for the pupil.
The Sun (2016)
They no longer have last year's hole in their head.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Eight birdies in four holes was gilt-edged golf.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
You'll have to find your own rabbit hole.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It's not difficult to pick holes in the proposals.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
He also had birdie putts on the 17th and 18th holes as he finished eight under par.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
The 7th is the only hole on the course that really makes use of Hazeltine lake.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
If using festive pastry shapes instead, you won't need to make any holes in the pastry.
The Sun (2016)
They need acquisition complexity like a hole in the head.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Or the perfect bolt hole for a golfing weekend?
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The main hole in this theory is that there is not one shred of evidence.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
They used to make holes in the skirting boards and come out and look at you.
Max Arthur Lost Voices of the Edwardians: 19011910 in the words of the Men & Women Who WereThere (2006)
What can one do when one finds that one only fits into one hole?
Edith Wharton The House of Mirth (1905)
This is the hardest hole on the course.
The Sun (2013)
They decided to play another nine holes.
John Fisher Tommy Cooper: Always Leave Them Laughing (2006)
The head rolled down a rabbit hole.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Try not to pick holes in yourself.
French, Barbara Coping with Bulimia (1987)
The pitch is full of rabbit holes and cuts up too easily.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
There is a kind of owl that makes holes to live in like moles.
Louisa May Alcott Little Men (1871)
It was pointed out that playing nine holes of golf on the morning of the match was not entirely the best preparation.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
How did he make a double bogey from the fairway on the 18th hole?
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
She nearly made a hole in my head just now, but we must not get discouraged.
Johanna Spyri Heidi (1881)
He holed a bunker shot to pick up a birdie on the 16th.
The Sun (2013)
With the new back tees this hole is much more like it used to be 20 years ago.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
A bogey on the opening hole led to a grimace and prolonged whispering from the galleries.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
It was obvious other people had hit the hole, as there were five or six wheel trims in the hedge.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Just ask the three women in Yorkshire who had a miraculous escape when their car landed upside down after hitting a hole.
The Sun (2011)
In other languages
hole
British English: hole /həʊl/ NOUN
A hole is an opening or hollow space in something.
The builders cut holes into the soft stone.
American English: hole
Arabic: حُفْرَة
Brazilian Portuguese: buraco
Chinese: 洞
Croatian: rupa
Czech: díra
Danish: hul
Dutch: gat
European Spanish: agujero
Finnish: reikä
French: trou
German: Loch
Greek: τρύπα
Italian: buco
Japanese: 穴
Korean: 구멍
Norwegian: hull
Polish: dziura
European Portuguese: buraco
Romanian: gaură
Russian: дыра
Latin American Spanish: agujero
Swedish: hål
Thai: รู
Turkish: delik çorap, duvar vb
Ukrainian: діра
Vietnamese: lỗ hổng
All related terms of 'hole'
hole up
If you hole up somewhere , you hide or shut yourself there, usually so that people cannot find you or disturb you.
air hole
a hole that allows the passage of air, esp for ventilation
beam hole
a hole in the shield of a nuclear reactor through which a beam of radiation, esp of neutrons , is allowed to escape for experimental purposes
bolt hole
If you say that someone has a bolt-hole to go to, you mean that there is somewhere that they can go when they want to get away from people that they know .
dene hole
a hole or shaft excavated in the chalk of southern England or northern France, of uncertain origin and purpose
dry hole
(in the oil industry ) a well that is drilled but does not produce oil or gas in commercially worthwhile amounts
hidy-hole
a hiding place
hole card
a card dealt face down in stud poker
hole high
at a spot on or near the green that is as far as the hole is from where the ball was hit
hole out
to hit the ball into the hole
hole saw
a hollow cylinder with teeth on the bottom edge attached by means of a bit , as to a portable electric drill , and used for cutting circles
lamp-hole
a hole in the ground for lowering a lamp down into a sewer
moth-hole
a hole in a piece of material or item clothing caused by a moth eating it
nine-hole
(of a golf course ) having nine holes ; relating to a course having nine holes
pie-hole
a person's mouth
shit-hole
a very bad place; a disgusting place
shot hole
a drilled hole into which explosive is put for blasting
snow hole
a shelter dug in deep usually drifted snow
the hole
→ solitary confinement ; also, a cell used for solitary confinement
top-hole
excellent ; splendid
black hole
Black holes are areas in space, where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape from them. Black holes are thought to be formed by collapsed stars .
bogey hole
a natural pool used for swimming
bullet hole
hole made by a bullet
cased hole
A cased hole is the part of the wellbore with metal casing and cementing .
cubby-hole
A cubby-hole is a very small room or space for storing things.
finger hole
one of a set of holes for the finger on the rotating dial of a telephone
glory hole
a room, cupboard , or other storage space that contains an untidy and miscellaneous collection of objects
gnamma hole
a natural well in a rock
in a hole
If you say that you are in a hole , you mean that you are in a difficult or embarrassing situation .
judas hole
a peephole or a very small window in a door
kettle hole
a round hollow formed by the melting of a mass of buried ice
namma hole
a natural well in a rock
ozone hole
an area of the atmosphere where the ozone layer is particularly thin or absent
pigeon-hole
A pigeon-hole is one of the sections in a frame on a wall where letters and messages can be left for someone, or one of the sections in a writing desk where you can keep documents .
priest-hole
a secret chamber in certain houses in England, built as a hiding place for Roman Catholic priests when they were proscribed in the 16th and 17th centuries
rabbit hole
a hole in the ground dug by wild rabbits and leading to a warren
sound hole
any of variously shaped apertures in the sounding board of certain stringed instruments, such as the ' f ' shaped holes of a violin
spider hole
a foxhole with a camouflaged lid or cover in which a sniper hides
water hole
In a desert or other dry area, a water hole is a pool of water where animals can drink.
white hole
a hypothetical region which cannot be entered but from which matter can escape
Wookey Hole
a village in SW England, in Somerset , near Wells : noted for the nearby limestone cave in which prehistoric remains have been found
doughnut hole
a funding shortfall in the standard drug benefit offered by many Medicare prescription drug plans
lubber's hole
a hole in a top or platform on a mast through which a sailor can climb
swallow hole
a depression in the ground surface, esp in limestone , where a surface stream disappears underground
swimming hole
a pond or a deep place in a river, creek , etc. used for swimming
watering hole
You can refer to a pub or bar where people go to drink and meet their friends as a watering hole .
a hole card
something that you keep secret or hidden until you are ready to use it to gain an advantage over other people
hole in one
a shot from the tee that finishes in the hole
in the hole
in debt
nineteenth hole
the bar in a golf clubhouse
Chinese translation of 'hole'
hole
(həul)
n(c)
(= space, gap) 洞 (dòng) (个(個), gè)
(= tear) (in clothing, pocket, bag) 破洞 (pòdòng) (个(個), gè)
(for rabbit, mouse etc) 洞穴 (dòngxué)
(inf, = unpleasant place) 陋室 (lòushì)
(Golf) 球洞 (qiúdòng)
vt
[ship, building etc]打洞 (dǎdòng)
hole in the heart (Med) 心脏(臟)穿孔 (xīnzàng chuānkǒng)
to pick holes (in sth) (inf, fig) 找某物(中)的漏洞 (zhǎo mǒuwù (zhōng) de lòudòng)
a hole in one一击(擊)入洞 (yī jī rù dòng)
All related terms of 'hole'
hole up
躲藏 duǒcáng
a hole in one
一击(擊)入洞 yī jī rù dòng
hole in the heart
( Med ) 心脏(臟)穿孔 xīnzàng chuānkǒng
to cut a hole in sth
在某物上打个(個)洞 zài mǒuwù shang dǎ gè dòng
to knock a hole in sth
在某处(處)打个(個)洞 zài mǒuchù dǎ gè dòng
to peck a hole in sth
在某物上啄一个(個)洞 zài mǒuwù shang zhuó yī gè dòng
to punch a hole in sth
在某物上打孔 zài mǒuwù shang dǎkǒng
to wear a hole in sth
在某物上磨出一个(個)洞 zài mǒuwù shang móchū yī gè dòng
the cigarette burnt a hole in her dress
香烟(煙)在她的连(連)衣裙上烫(燙)了个(個)洞 xiāngyān zài tā de liányīqún shang tàngle gè dòng
1 (noun)
Definition
an area hollowed out in a solid
He took a shovel, dug a hole, and buried his possessions.
Synonyms
cavity
The sinuses are four sets of air-filled cavities leading directly from the nose.
depression
an area pockmarked by rainfilled depressions
pit
He lost his footing and began to slide into the pit.
hollow
where water gathers in a hollow and forms a pond
pocket
chamber
The incinerator works by focusing the sun's rays onto a cylindrical glass chamber.
cave
creatures such as bats and moths which shelter in caves
shaft
old mine shafts
cavern
an enormous cavern, with caves running in all directions from it
excavation
excavations in the earth
2 (noun)
Definition
an opening in or through something
They got in through a hole in the wall.kids with holes in the knees of their jeans
Synonyms
opening
He squeezed through an opening in the fence.
split
The seat had a few small splits around the corners.
crack
She watched him though a crack in the curtains.
break
a break in the earth's surface
tear
I peered through a tear in the van's curtains.
gap
the wind tearing through gaps in the window frames
rent
welling up from a rent in the ground
breach
A large battering ram hammered a breach in the wall.
outlet
The leak was caused by a fracture in the cooling water outlet.
vent
There was a small air vent in the ceiling.
puncture
an instrument used to make a puncture in the abdominal wall
aperture
Through the aperture he could see daylight.
fissure
There was a great crack, and a fissure opened up.
orifice
Viruses get into the body via any convenient orifice.
perforation
3 (noun)
Definition
an animal's burrow
a rabbit hole
Synonyms
burrow
a rabbit's burrow
nest
He discovered a rats' nest built from the remains of cardboard boxes.
den
The skunk makes its den in burrows and hollow logs.
earth
shelter
a shelter for homeless women
retreat
He spent yesterday in his country retreat.
covert
lair
a fox's lair
4 (noun)
Definition
a fault or error
There were some holes in that theory.
Synonyms
fault
His manners always made her blind to his faults.
error
NASA discovered a mathematical error in its calculations.
flaw
Almost all these studies have serious flaws.
defect
The report pointed out the defects in the present system.
loophole
discrepancy
the discrepancy between press and radio reports
inconsistency
the alleged inconsistencies in her evidence
fallacy
This is the biggest fallacy of all.
5 (noun)
Definition
an unattractive town or other place
(informal)
Why don't you leave this awful hole and come to live with me?
Synonyms
hovel
The room I was given was a hovel.
dump (informal)
`What a dump!' she said.
dive (slang)
We've played in all the dives about here.
slum
The city had the worst slums in Europe.
joint (slang)
I took him to the best 24-hour pizza joint in New York.
6 (noun)
(informal)
He admitted that the government was in `a dreadful hole'.
Synonyms
predicament
The decision will leave her in a predicament.
spot (informal)
In a tight spot there is no one I would sooner see than Frank.
fix (informal)
The government has got itself in a fix.
mess
I've got myself into a bit of a mess.
jam (informal)
It could get the government out of a jam.
dilemma
The issue raises a moral dilemma.
scrape (informal)
We got into terrible scrapes.
tangle
I was thinking what a tangle we had got ourselves into.
hot water (informal)
quandary
The anonymous letter creates a quandary for the judge.
tight spot
imbroglio
7 (noun)
(informal)
Synonyms
dungeon
the ceiling of the tiny dungeon
cell
They took her back to the cell, and just left her there.
prison
They released him from prison in 1990.
oubliette
calaboose (US, informal)
boob (Australian, slang)
phrasal verb
See hole up
idiom
See pick holes in something
Additional synonyms
in the sense of aperture
Definition
a hole or opening
Through the aperture he could see daylight.
Synonyms
opening,
space,
hole,
crack,
gap,
rent,
passage,
breach,
slot,
vent,
rift,
slit,
cleft,
eye,
chink,
fissure,
orifice,
perforation,
eyelet,
interstice
in the sense of breach
Definition
a crack, break, or gap
A large battering ram hammered a breach in the wall.