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Added 9 October 2026

honeycomb

/ˈhʌnikəʊm/ noun

In Latin: favus Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about honeycomb at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A structure of small hexagonal cells constructed from beeswax by bees and used to store honey and larvae.
A framework of hexagonal cells resembling the honeycomb built by bees.

verb

Carve a honeycomb pattern into.
The cliffs were honeycombed
Penetrate thoroughly and into every part.
the revolutionaries honeycombed the organization
Make full of cavities, like a honeycomb.

Origin

The noun is derived from Middle English honycomb, from Old English huniġcamb, from huniġ (“honey”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kn̥h₂ónks (“honey”)) + camb (“comb”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵómbʰos (“peg; tooth; row of teeth”)). The English word is analysable as honey + comb. The Oxford English Dictionary posits that the arrangement of several plates of wax “hanging parallel to each other from the roof of the hive suggests a comb with its teeth”. The verb is derived from the noun. Compare Saterland Frisian Hunichmoarte (“honeycomb”), West Frisian huningskiif (“honeycomb”), Dutch honingraat (“honeycomb”), German Honigwabe (“honeycomb”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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