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hale

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hale

1[heyl]
–adjective, hal⋅er, hal⋅est.
free from disease or infirmity; robust; vigorous: hale and hearty men in the prime of life.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME (north); OE hāl whole


haleness, noun


1. sound, healthy,


1. sickly.

hale

2[heyl]
–verb (used with object), haled, hal⋅ing.
1. to compel (someone) to go: to hale a man into court.
2. to haul; pull.

Origin:
1175–1225; ME halen < MF haler < Gmc; cf. D halen to pull, fetch; akin to OE geholian to get, G holen to fetch. See haul


haler, noun

ha⋅le

3[hah-ley]
–noun
(in Hawaii) a simple thatched-roof dwelling.

Origin:
< Hawaiian; house, building

Hale

[heyl]
–noun
1. Edward Everett, 1822–1909, U.S. clergyman and author.
2. George El⋅ler⋅y [el-uh-ree] , 1868–1938, U.S. astronomer.
3. Sir Matthew, 1609–76, British jurist: Lord Chief Justice 1671–76.
4. Nathan, 1755–76, American soldier hanged as a spy by the British during the American Revolution.
5. Sarah Jo⋅se⋅pha [joh-see-fuh] , 1788–1879, U.S. editor and author.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To hale
hale 1   (hāl)   
adj.   hal·er, hal·est
Free from infirmity or illness; sound. See Synonyms at healthy.

[Middle English, from Old English hāl; see kailo- in Indo-European roots.]
hale'ness n.
hale 2   (hāl)   
tr.v.   haled, hal·ing, hales
  1. To compel to go: "In short order the human rights campaign was haled before a high court of indignation" (Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.)

  2. Archaic To pull, draw, drag, or hoist.


[Middle English halen, to pull, drag, from Old French haler, of Germanic origin; see kelə-2 in Indo-European roots.]
Hale   (hāl)   
American Unitarian cleric and writer whose more than 150 literary works include the story "The Man Without a Country" (1863). His sister Lucretia Peabody Hale (1820-1900) wrote two noted children's books, The Peterkin Papers (1880) and The Last of the Peterkins (1886).
Hale, George Ellery 1868-1938.  
American astrophysicist who invented the spectroheliograph (1891) and directed the Mount Wilson Observatory (1904-1923).
Hale, Nathan 1755-1776.  
American Revolutionary soldier hanged by the British as a spy. According to tradition, his last words were "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."
Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell 1788-1879.  
American writer and editor of Godey's Lady's Book (1837-1877), the most popular American women's magazine of its time. Her own works include the poem "Mary Had a Little Lamb" (1830).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

hale  (adj.)
"healthy," O.E. hal "healthy" (see health). The Scottish and northern English form of whole, it was given a literary sense of "free from infirmity" (1734).

hale  (v.)
"drag, summon," c.1205, from O.Fr. haler "to pull, haul," from Frank. *halon or O.Du. halen, both from P.Gmc.; probably also from O.E. geholian "obtain" (see haul).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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