verb
heil
hyl
verb
1
To greet someone with the raised-arm "Sieg Heil" salute, historically associated with Nazi Germany.
"Newsreels showed the crowd heiling as the motorcade passed."
noun
1
The raised-arm salute and greeting itself.
"The soldier gave a stiff heil before stepping back into line."
How to Use Heil
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe Nazi-era salute and greeting, or the act of performing it.
When to use it
Strongly associated with Nazi Germany; used in modern English almost exclusively in historical, documentary, or critical contexts.
Word Forms
heiled past tense, heils plural, Heils plural, heils singular
Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.
Test yourself on “heil”
A quick quiz — meaning, synonyms & usage
→
Fill the Gap
Can you complete this real example?
Newsreels showed the crowd _____ as the motorcade passed.
Etymology
Borrowed from German heil ("hail, whole, healthy"), the same ancient root that gives English "whole," "hail," and "hale."