# hay

> English word · Noun · IPA /heɪ/ · frequency rank #8,152

## Definitions
1. Grass cut and dried for use as animal fodder.
2. Any mix of green leafy plants used for fodder.
3. Cannabis; marijuana.
4. A net set around the haunt of an animal, especially a rabbit.

## Etymology
From Middle English hey, from Old English hīeġ, from Proto-West Germanic *hawi, from Proto-Germanic *hawją, from *hawwaną (“to hew, cut down”).
Cognate with West Frisian hea (“hay”), Alemannic German Heuw (“hay”), Cimbrian höobe (“hay”), Dutch hooi (“hay”), German Heu (“hay”), Luxembourgish Hee (“hay”), Mòcheno hei (“hay”), Yiddish היי (hey, “hay”), Danish hø (“hay”), Faroese hoyggj (“hay”), Gutnish hoy (“hay”), Icelandic hey (“hay”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk høy (“hay”), Swedish hö (“hay”), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐍅𐌹 (hawi, “grass, hay”). More at hew.

## Easily confused with
- **he** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-he)
- **hi** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hi)
- **HD** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hd)
- **ho** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-ho)
- **HR** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hr)
- **HP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hp)
- **hm** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hm)
- **HQ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hq)
- **hc** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hc)
- **Hu** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hu)
- **HK** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hk)
- **HB** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hb)
- **HG** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hg)
- **HH** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hh)
- **hv** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hv)
- **hn** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-hn)
- **his** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-his)
- **her** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-her)
- **how** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-how)
- **him** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hay-vs-him)

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/hay