Meaning
A hollow cavity.
Etymology
Origin: Old English
From Middle English holk, from Old English holc, holoc (“hole, cavity”), from Proto-West Germanic *holuk, from Proto-Germanic *hulukaz (“a hollow”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱel- (“to cover, hide”). Equivalent to hole + -ock (diminutive ending). Cognate with Low German holke, hölke (“small hole”), German Holk (“a type of flat-bottomed barge”), Swedish holk (“nest, birdhouse”), dialectal Norwegian holk, hylke (“wooden barrel, cask”), Icelandic hólkur (“hollow cylinder or tube”). Related to hulk.
NYT Puzzle Appearances
No published puzzle dates on file for this word yet. It is part of the official NYT Spelling Bee word list for 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022.