hic
/hɪk/interjection
hic is spelled H-I-C: 3 letters. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 49,368th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an interjection, hic means “An approximation to the sound of a hiccup, used e.g. to indicate drunkenness” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in hic?
| Letters | 3: H-I-C |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 49,368th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Sounds like | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is hic?
Hic appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 49,368th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce hic?
- US /hɪk/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-hic.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with hic
Sounds like: hick (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with hic?
10 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as hic from its last stressed vowel (/ɪk/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: chi, ich.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
What does hic mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
interjection
- 1
An approximation to the sound of a hiccup, used e.g. to indicate drunkenness.
"This wine - hic! - tasted good."
noun
- 1
Initialism of high-income country.
Near-synonym: developed country
- 2
Initialism of hybrid integrated circuit.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hic in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense Translations:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | hick, hicks |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does hic come from?
Onomatopoeic.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).