noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A cone-shaped structure built from sediment and other available materials by ants or white ants (termites), and beneath which the colony nests.

   "On arrival at Edinburgh Waverley, I fight my way through the throngs of tourists and locals turning the place into a human anthill."

2. 2
   a mound of earth made by ants as they dig their nest wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

bankbarrowbraebuttecockdown

Example

More examples

"He stuck a straw into an anthill."

Etymology

From Middle English ametehul, amptehille, from Old English ǣmethyll, equivalent to ant + hill.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.