Meaning

(dated) An utterance used to discreetly attract someone's attention..

Definitions by Sense

1. (dated) An utterance used to discreetly attract someone's attention.
2. (dated) An injunction to be silent and/or to pay attention to what is being said or can be heard.
3. (dated) An instance of an exclamation attracting attention or injunction to be silent.
4. Abbreviation of history.
5. (US) Pronunciation spelling of hoist.

Example Sentences

1850, Edgar Allan Poe, Scenes from "Politian", 2009 [1902], Charles F. Richardson (editor), The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Volume 1: Poems, page 87, Hist! hist! thou canst not say / Thou hearest not now Baldazzar?,

"My worthy Nelly! I am greatly rejoiced to find it is no other than thee. Hist! child, hist! Should Ishmael gain a knowledge of our plans, he would not hesitate to cast us both from this rock, upon the plain beneath. Hist! Nelly, hist!"

There’s a clue somewhere; wait a bit; hist—hark! By Jove, I have it!

'A tinker!' repeated Sir Hugh, quite loud, in defiance of the signs and hists! hists! of Camilla, 'good lack! that's a person I should never have thought of!'

1952, R. A. Atkinson, Uncle Aaron Peddles a Possum, 2010 [1976], J. Mason Brewer (editor), Dog Ghosts and The Word on the Brazos (Combined edition), page 30, When he spy de train a-comin' 'roun' de curve, he hists de hankershuf way up ovuh his haid for hit to stop, an' when de engineer rech de spot whar Unkuh Aaron stannin', he jumps down outen his seat to de groun' an asts Unkuh Aaron de why he stop de train.

Word Forms

• hists
• histing
• histed

Synonyms for hist.

Related Words

When Should You Use Hist.?

Use hist. when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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