hailstone

IPA/ˈheɪlstəʊn/
KK[hˈelstˌon]IPA/ˈheɪlstəʊn/

hailstone — noun

  • hailstonesingular
  • hailstonesplural

1. a frozen lump of ice that forms inside storm clouds and drops to the ground duri

1.nounB1
Definition

a frozen lump of ice that forms inside storm clouds and drops to the ground during a severe thunderstorm

Example

During the storm, hailstones the size of golf balls damaged several cars in the parking lot.

collocation: the size of [object] describing hailstone dimensions

Aiko picked up a hailstone from the ground and was surprised by how cold it felt.

Common collocations
  • hailstones fall
  • hailstones hit / pelt / batter
  • hailstones damage / destroy
  • the size of a hailstone
  • hailstones the size of peas / marbles / golf balls
Synonyms
  • ice pellet

    more technical term used in meteorology; refers to smaller frozen precipitation

  • hail

    uncountable noun referring to the collective mass or the weather event, not an individual piece

Grammar Patterns

hailstone(s) + verb (fall, hit, damage)

hailstones + the size of + noun

Usage Note

This word is usually plural (hailstones) because hailstones rarely fall alone. The uncountable noun 'hail' refers to the general phenomenon (e.g., 'Hail fell all afternoon'), while 'hailstone' refers to one individual piece.

Common Mistakes

There was a lot of hailstones on the ground.
There were a lot of hailstones on the ground.
'hailstones' is a countable noun, so use 'were' instead of 'was'.
The hail was so big it broke the window.' (when referring to one specific stone)
The hailstone was so big it broke the window.
'hail' is uncountable and describes the collective ice fall; use 'hailstone' for a single piece.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Hail' is the uncountable mass noun for the weather event itself ('Hail damaged the crops'), while 'hailstone' is the countable word for one individual piece. 'Sleet' differs because it is a mix of rain and partially frozen ice that is softer and smaller than hailstones. 'Ice pellet' is a more formal meteorological term for small frozen drops, typically smaller than hailstones and less damaging. Use 'hailstone' when you want to describe the size, shape, or impact of one or more individual pieces of ice — for example, 'Some hailstones were as big as tennis balls,' or 'A single hailstone left a dent in the roof.'

hail ↗hailstone ↗sleet ↗ice pellet

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • the size of a hailstone
  • a shower of hailstones
  • hailstones as big as

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'hailstone' comes from Old English 'hagolstan', which was a compound of 'hagol' (hail) and 'stān' (stone). Over time, 'hagol' became 'hail' in Middle English, and 'stān' became 'stone', forming the modern compound 'hailstone'.