holly
/ˈhɑli/noun
holly is spelled H-O-L-L-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 7.6 times per million words in written English, the 8,542nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Holly, the name). As a noun, holly means “Any of various shrubs or (mostly) small trees, of the genus Ilex, either evergreen or deciduous, used as decoration especially at Christmas” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of holly is hollies.
How many letters and syllables are in holly?
| Letters | 5: H-O-L-L-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 7.6 times per million words; the 8,542nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; 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 holly?
Holly appears 7.6 times per million words in written English, the 8,542nd most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Holly, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce holly?
- UK /ˈhɒli/
- British /ˈhɔlɪj/
- US /ˈhɑli/
Holly has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-holly.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with holly?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as holly from its last stressed vowel (/ɑli/):
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).
Forms of holly
- hollies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does holly mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any of various shrubs or (mostly) small trees, of the genus Ilex, either evergreen or deciduous, used as decoration especially at Christmas.
We'll deck the halls with boughs of holly.
- 2
The wood from this tree.
- 3
Any of several not closely related plant species likened to Ilex because of their prickly, evergreen foliage and/or round, bright-red berries
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Holly in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense any of various shrubs or small trees of the genus Ilex:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | houx |
| German | Stechpalme, Hulse, Hulst, Hülse, Stechhülse, Hülsdorn |
| Portuguese | azevinho |
| Spanish | acebo |
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 holly come from?
From Middle English holly, holi, holie, a shortened variation of holin, holyn (> English dialectal hollen, holm), from Old English holeġn, holen (“holly; prince, protector”), from Proto-West Germanic *hulis (“holly”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₂- (“to beat, break”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).