hillock

American  

[hil-uhk] / ˈhɪl ək /

noun

1. a small hill.

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hillock British  

/ ˈhɪlək /

noun

1. a small hill or mound

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Other Word Forms

• hillocked adjective
• hillocky adjective

Etymology

Origin of hillock

First recorded in 1350–1400, hillock is from the Middle English word hilloc. See hill, -ock

Explanation

A hillock is a small mound of land that's often nearby a group of taller hills. Small children can rarely resist rolling down a grassy hillock. The word hillock was formed by adding the Old English diminutive -oc to hill, meaning "little hill." You can also call this small, ridged slope of land a knoll. You might sit in the shade of a hillock to eat your picnic lunch, or watch your dog scampering up and down hillocks covered in wildflowers. While you may get out of breath running up a hill, you'll scale a hillock with no problem.

Example Sentences

Father Luget, Mr Halliday says, claimed to have seen the light over a hillock in the rectory garden and to have seen the Crucifixion above it and the Virgin Mary kneeling before it.

From BBC • Jul. 16, 2023

WINTHROP, Okanogan County — On a rocky hillock crowned with lupine and yarrow, Methow Conservancy Executive Director Sarah Brooks surveyed the Sunny M Ranch on the eve of a historic land deal.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 16, 2023

In the afternoon, we reached the bottom and waited on a hillock for Aidano to drive us to Lengai Safari Lodge.

From New York Times • Apr. 17, 2023

Railway workers are planning to build a sandy hillock there where the badgers can dig their homes.

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2023

Major Puff thrust out his chest defiantly and proceeded to march down the hillock toward his enemy.

From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el