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hill

/hɪl/
nounverb

HILL meaning: an elevated area of land; the four-letter word is worth 7 Scrabble points.

NWL Collins ENABLE

Noun 4 meanings

  1. An elevated landmass smaller than a mountain.

    “The park is sheltered from the wind by a hill to the east.”

  2. A sloping part of a landscape, especially one with a road, trail, etc.

    “You need to pick up speed to get up the hill that's coming up.”

  3. A heap of earth surrounding a plant.

  4. A single cluster or group of plants growing close together, and having the earth heaped up about them.

    “a hill of corn or potatoes”

Verb 2 meanings

  1. To form into a heap or mound.

  2. To heap or draw earth around plants.

Definitions: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA) via Kaikki/Wiktextract

Where it comes from

Etymology

From Middle English hil (“hill”), from Old English hyll (“hill”), from Proto-West Germanic *hulli (“hill”), from Proto-Germanic *hulliz (“hill”), from Proto-Indo-European *kl̥Hnís (“top, hill, rock”) (compare also Proto-Germanic *halluz (“stone, rock”)).

Similar and opposite words

Opposite
dale

HILL is a common noun for elevated land smaller than a mountain. It also names a slope, such as a road climbing uphill, or a heap of earth around a plant. The word is accepted in Collins, NWL2023, and ENABLE, so it works across several major word-game lists.

HILL at a glance

  • HILL is a common four-letter English noun.
  • Its base Scrabble value is 7 points.
  • H is worth 4 points; I and each L are worth 1.
  • HILL has no anagrams in the checked word lists.
  • There are 24 listed words one letter away from HILL.

What does HILL mean, and which words are close to it?

The main meaning of HILL is a raised landform below the scale of a mountain. In everyday speech, a hill can also mean the sloping stretch itself: a cyclist pedals up a hill, while a house sits on one.

The word has a couple of less obvious uses, too. A gardener may hill soil around a plant, and a small group of plants growing on a mound can be called a hill. Context tells you whether the word names the land, its slope, or a heap.

Changing one letter gives familiar neighbours such as WILL, BILL, KILL, and MILL. HULL keeps the opening H but changes the vowel; HILT changes the final letter instead. These are one-letter neighbours, not anagrams: HILL has no anagrams in the checked lists.

What is the HILL meaning for word-game play?

HILL’s seven-point face value comes from H at 4, I at 1, and two L tiles at 1 each. The H carries most of the score, so a double-letter square under H adds four points and brings the play to 11 before other premiums.

The repeated L is worth noticing when you plan a rack: both tiles score only one point, but keeping one can preserve options for a later play. HILL is also a plain, familiar word, not a specialist spelling that needs a rare definition to justify it.

The score shown is the tile value before board bonuses, and the word itself does not have a Wordle answer or allowed-guess status here. Check your game's word list before playing, since dictionaries differ. For more options, browse 4-letter words starting with H or ending in L.

Rhymes with hill

All rhymes

One letter away

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Questions people ask

What does hill mean?
A hill is an elevated landform smaller than a mountain. The word can also mean a sloping part of a landscape, a mound of earth around a plant, or a small cluster of plants growing on a mound.
How many points is HILL worth in Scrabble?
HILL is worth 7 points before board bonuses. H contributes 4 points, while I and the two L tiles contribute 1 point each; a premium square can change the total score of the play.
Is HILL a valid word in Scrabble?
Yes. HILL appears in Collins, NWL2023, and ENABLE, so it is accepted in those word lists. Its familiar meaning is an elevated area of land, and its tile value is 7 points before bonuses.

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