herald

C2 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /ˈhɛɹ.əld/ See IPA manual

Freq #13221

Meanings

1

verb
To be a sign that something is coming or about to happen.

The warm breeze heralded the arrival of spring.
2

verb
To greet or praise something with great enthusiasm.

The film was heralded by critics as a masterpiece.
3

noun
A sign that something is about to come.

Daffodils are heralds of spring.
4

noun
A person who carries or announces important news, especially in the past.

The herald blew his trumpet and announced that the king had died.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to be a sign that something... announce proclaim

3 noun · a sign that something is... predecessor

4 noun · a person who carries or... trumpeter

Word family

Forms heraldedheraldingheralds

Derived forms coheraldheralderheraldessheraldistheraldshipheraldyunheralded

Related forms heraldic heraldry

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

herald the beginning
To announce or proclaim the arrival of a new phase, often with grandeur

Verb + noun

Etymology

From Latin heraldus, from Middle English herald, herauld, heraud, from Anglo-Norman heraud, from Old French heraut, hiraut (modern French héraut), from Frankish *heriwald, from Proto-Germanic *harjawaldaz, a compound consisting of Proto-Indo-European *ker- (“army”) + *h₂welh₁- (“to be strong”). Doublet of Harold and Harald; compare Walter, which has these elements reversed.

*ker- Proto-Indo-European heraldus Latin herald Middle English heraud xno heraut Old French *heriwald frk *harjawaldaz Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# herald

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** verb, noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈhɛɹ.əld/
**Frequency rank:** 13221

## Meanings
1. To be a sign that something is coming or about to happen.
2. To greet or praise something with great enthusiasm.
3. A sign that something is about to come.
4. A person who carries or announces important news, especially in the past.

## Examples
- The warm breeze heralded the arrival of spring.
- The film was heralded by critics as a masterpiece.
- Daffodils are heralds of spring.
- The herald blew his trumpet and announced that the king had died.

## Derived Forms
- coherald
- heralder
- heraldess
- heraldist
- heraldship
- heraldy
- unheralded

## Related Forms
- heraldic
- heraldry

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *ker-
- Root: heraldus
- Root: herald
- Root: heraud
- Root: heraut
- Root: *heriwald
- Root: *harjawaldaz

## Etymology
From Latin heraldus, from Middle English herald, herauld, heraud, from Anglo-Norman heraud, from Old French heraut, hiraut (modern French héraut), from Frankish *heriwald, from Proto-Germanic *harjawaldaz, a compound consisting of Proto-Indo-European *ker- (“army”) + *h₂welh₁- (“to be strong”). Doublet of Harold and Harald; compare Walter, which has these elements reversed.

## AI Etymology
Herald is from Latin heraldus, from Middle English herald, herauld, heraud, from Anglo-Norman heraud, from Old French heraut, hiraut (modern French héraut), from Frankish *heriwald, from Proto-Germanic *harjawaldaz, a compound consisting of Proto-Indo-European *ker- (“army”) + *h₂welh₁- (“to be strong”). Doublet of Harold and Harald; compare Walter, which has these elements reversed. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include *ker- (Proto-Indo-European), heraldus (Latin), herald (Middle English), heraud (xno), heraut (Old French), *heriwald (frk), and *harjawaldaz (Proto-Germanic). Current senses include to be a sign that something is coming or about to happen and to greet or praise something with great enthusiasm. The wider family includes derived forms such as coherald, heralder, heraldess, heraldist, and heraldship; related words such as heraldic and heraldry.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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