hilum
hi·lum/ˈhaɪ.ləm/noun
hilum is spelled H-I-L-U-M: 5 letters and 2 syllables (hi·lum). It appears about once in every 22 million words in written English, the 141,699th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, hilum means “The eye of a bean or other seed, or the center of that eye; the mark or scar at the point of attachment of an ovule or seed to its base or support” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of hilum is hila.
How many letters and syllables are in hilum?
| Letters | 5: H-I-L-U-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: hi·lum |
| In writing | about once in every 22 million words; the 141,699th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is hilum?
Hilum appears about once in every 22 million words in written English, the 141,699th 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 hilum?
- /ˈhaɪ.ləm/
Hilum has 2 syllables, split hi·lum in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-hilum.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of hilum
- hila plural
- hile
- hilus
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does hilum mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The eye of a bean or other seed, or the center of that eye; the mark or scar at the point of attachment of an ovule or seed to its base or support.
- 2
The nucleus of a starch grain.
- 3
A depression or fissure through which ducts, nerves, or blood vessels enter and leave a gland or organ.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hilum in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 hilum come from?
Learned borrowing from Latin hīlum (“a trifle; a spot on a seed”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).