English word origin

Etymology of holey

From Middle English holy, holi, holly, holli (“holey, spongy, hollow”); equivalent to hole + -y. The e was inserted in Modern English to distinguish the word from holy (“hallowed, sacred”).

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗

adj

Having, or being full of, holes.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English holy, holi, holly, holli (“holey, spongy, hollow”); equivalent to hole + -y. The e was inserted in Modern English to distinguish the word from holy (“hallowed, sacred”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inherited-form mentionholyenm
Word-formation componentholeen
Word-formation component-yen

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "holy"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English holy"
    },
    {
      "name": "af",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "hole",
        "3": "-y",
        "id2": "adjectival"
      },
      "expansion": "hole + -y"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "holy",
      "holy#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "holi",
      "holi#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "holly",
      "holly#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "holli",
      "holli#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "hole",
      "hole#English"
    ],
    [
      "-y",
      "-y#English:_adjectival"
    ],
    [
      "holy",
      "holy#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Having, or being full of, holes."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "c7fd497635ce2077e85fb382d739c474912bfc6f8302f93408483ac437d715bb",
      "rawRecordSha256": "cf11a1285f0e10eb3a9a1f7dda3286ec8a769ffd433390684f9ab285bb4d170f",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 339552
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for holey →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-aG9sZXk