hovel
/ˈhɑvəl/noun, verb
hovel is spelled H-O-V-E-L: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 65,913th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, hovel means “An open shed for sheltering cattle, or protecting produce, etc., from the weather” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of hovel is hovels.
How many letters and syllables are in hovel?
| Letters | 5: H-O-V-E-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 65,913th 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 hovel?
Hovel appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 65,913th 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 hovel?
- UK /ˈhɒvəl/
- UK /ˈhʌvəl/
- US /ˈhɑvəl/
Hovel 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-hovel.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with hovel?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as hovel from its last stressed vowel (/ɑvəl/):
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 hovel
- hovels plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- hoveling US, participle, present
- hovelling UK, participle, present
- hoveled US, participle, past
- hovelled UK, participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does hovel mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An open shed for sheltering cattle, or protecting produce, etc., from the weather.
- 2
derogatoryA poor cottage; a small, mean house; a hut.
- 3
In the manufacture of porcelain, a large, conical brick structure around which the firing kilns are grouped.
- 4
archaicslangA straitjacket.
verb
- 1
To put in a hovel; to shelter.
- 2
To construct a chimney so as to prevent smoking, by making two of the more exposed walls higher than the others, or making an opening on one side near the top.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hovel in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Unterstand , Bruchbude, Baracke |
| French | taudis |
| Portuguese | barraco, casebre |
| Spanish | cuchitril, casucha, timberiche, tugurio |
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 hovel come from?
From Middle English hovel, hovil, hovylle, diminutive of *hove, *hof (“structure, building, house”), from Old English hof (“an enclosure, court, dwelling, house”), from Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą (“hill, farm”), from Proto-Indo-European *kewp- (“arch, bend, buckle”), equivalent to howf + -el. Compare Middle High German hobel (“cover, lid, covered wagon”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).