Hate

How to spell hate

4 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce hate

What does hate mean?

1. verbTo feel intense dislike or hostility towards someone or something.
2. nounIntense dislike or hostility felt towards someone or something.

Hate in a sentence

• verb

  Many commuters hate the long delays on the morning train.

• noun

  The campaign tried to replace fear and hate with understanding.

• verb

  She came to hate the constant noise from the building site next door.

• noun

  His speech was full of hate for anyone who disagreed with him.

Where does hate come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is a native English word, descending from the Old English verb hatian, meaning 'to treat as an enemy' or 'to regard with strong dislike'. It traces back through the Proto-Germanic root hatojan, which is also the source of the German hassen and the Dutch haten, all carrying the sense of bitter hostility. The related Old English noun hete simply meant 'malice' or 'enmity'. Although the deeper roots are ancient, the spelling has stayed remarkably stable, with the final silent 'e' marking the long vowel sound that distinguishes hate from hat. Because it is such an old and frequent word, it carries no real spelling trap beyond remembering that lengthening 'e'.

How the word is built

• hat- (from Old English hatian: to detest)
• -e