huddle

huddle
\ \ [16] Huddle originally meant ‘hide’ (‘to chop off the head of the sentence, and slyly huddle the rest’, James Bell’s translation of Walter Haddon against Orosius 1581), suggesting that it could well be a derivative of the same base as produced English hide (its form indicates that it would have come via a Low German dialect). But virtually from the first huddling was more than just ‘hiding’ – it was ‘hiding in a heap or among a crowd’; and from this has developed the word’s modern meaning ‘crowd or draw together’.

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Huddle — Hud dle, v. t. 1. To crowd (things) together to mingle confusedly; to assemble without order or system. [1913 Webster] Our adversary, huddling several suppositions together, . . . makes a medley and confusion. Locke. [1913 Webster] 2. To do, make …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • huddle — [hud′ l] vi. huddled, huddling [orig. (16th c.), to put out of sight < ? or akin to ME hudel, var. of hidel, a hiding place < OE hydel < hydan, HIDE1] 1. to crowd, push, or nestle close together, as cows do in a storm 2. to draw the… …   English World dictionary

  • Huddle — Hud dle, n. A crowd; a number of persons or things crowded together in a confused manner; tumult; confusion. A huddle of ideas. Addison. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • huddle — (v.) 1570s, to heap or crowd together, probably from Low Ger. hudern to cover, to shelter, from M.L.G. huden to cover up, from P.Gmc. *hud (see HIDE (Cf. hide) (v.)). Cf. also M.E. hoderen heap together, huddle (c.1300). Related: Huddled;… …   Etymology dictionary

  • huddle — [n] assemblage, crowd, often disorganized bunch, chaos, cluster, clutter, confab*, conference, confusion, disarray, discussion, disorder, gathering, group, heap, jumble, mass, meeting, mess*, muddle; concepts 230,260 huddle [v] meet, discuss… …   New thesaurus

  • Huddle — Hud dle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Huddled}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Huddling}.] [Cf. OE. hoderen, hodren, to cover, keep, warm; perh. akin to OE. huden, hiden, to hide, E. hide, and orig. meaning, to get together for protection in a safe place. Cf. {Hide}… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • huddle — index meet, turmoil Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • huddle — ► VERB 1) crowd together. 2) curl one s body into a small space. ► NOUN ▪ a number of people or things crowded together. ORIGIN originally in the sense «conceal»: perhaps Low German …   English terms dictionary

  • Huddle — In sport, a huddle is when a team gathers together, usually in a tight circle, to strategise, motivate, and/or celebrate. It is a popular strategy for keeping opponents insulated from sensitive information, and acts as a form of insulation when… …   Wikipedia

  • huddle — I UK [ˈhʌd(ə)l] / US verb [intransitive] Word forms huddle : present tense I/you/we/they huddle he/she/it huddles present participle huddling past tense huddled past participle huddled 1) a) huddle or huddle together or huddle up to move close… …   English dictionary

  • huddle — hud|dle1 [ hʌdl ] verb intransitive or transitive huddle or huddle together or huddle up to move close together in order to stay warm, feel safe, or talk: huddle around: We huddled around the fire for warmth. huddle with: Several aides huddled… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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