host
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This table shows the most common forms around the 13th century.
See also Appendix:Old Czech nouns and Appendix:Old Czech pronunciation.
English
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /həʊst/
- (General American) IPA(key): /hoʊst/
Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -əʊst
Etymology 1
From Middle English hoste, from Old French oste (French: hôte), from Latin hospitem, accusative of hospes (“a host, also a sojourner, visitor, guest; hence, a foreigner, a stranger”), from *hostipotis, an old compound of hostis and the root of potis, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰostipotis (“master of guests”), from *gʰóstis (“stranger, guest, enemy”) and *pótis (“owner, master, host, husband”). Used in English since 13th century.
Noun
host (plural hosts, feminine hostess)
- One which receives or entertains a guest, socially, commercially, or officially.
- A good host is always considerate of the guest’s needs.
- c. 1602, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii]:
- Time is like a fashionable host, / That slightly shakes his parting guest by the hand.
- One that provides a facility for an event.
- A person or organization responsible for running an event.
- Our company is host of the annual conference this year.
- A moderator or master of ceremonies for a performance.
- Synonym: (UK) presenter
- The host was terrible, but the acts themselves were good.
- (computing, Internet) Any computer attached to a network.
- (ecology) A cell or organism which harbors another organism or biological entity, usually a parasite.
- Viruses depend on the host that they infect in order to be able to reproduce.
- 2013 May-June, Katie L. Burke, “In the News”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, page 193:
- A recent study explored the ecological variables that may contribute to bats’ propensity to harbor such zoonotic diseases by comparing them with another order of common reservoir hosts: rodents.
- (evolution, genetics) An organism bearing certain genetic material, with respect to its cells.
- The so-called junk DNA is known, so far, to provide no apparent benefit to its host.
- A paid male companion offering conversation and in some cases sex, as in certain types of bar in Japan.
Hyponyms
- (computing): localhost
Derived terms
- air host
- bulletproof host
- co-host
- definitive host
- DMZ host
- graft-versus-host
- graft-versus-host disease
- host cell
- host city
- host country
- hostel
- hoster
- hostess
- host family
- hostname
- host plant
- host response
- hostress
- host rock
- host selling
- host species
- host with the most
- jump host
- mine host
- no-host
- no host bar
- opinion host
- play host to
- reckon without one's host
- wraparound host
- zombie host
Related terms
Translations
person who receives or entertains a guest
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person or organisation responsible for running an event
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moderator
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computing: computer attached to a network
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biology: cell or organism which harbors another organism
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genetics: organism bearing certain genetic material
Verb
host (third-person singular simple present hosts, present participle hosting, simple past and past participle hosted)
- To perform the role of a host.
- Our company will host the annual conference this year.
- I was terrible at hosting that show.
- I’ll be hosting tonight. I hope I’m not terrible.
- 2013 May-June, Katie L. Burke, “In the News”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, page 193:
- Bats host many high-profile viruses that can infect humans, including severe acute respiratory syndrome and Ebola.
- (obsolete, intransitive) To lodge at an inn.
- c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :
- Where you shall host.
- (computing, Internet) To run software made available to a remote user or process.
- Kremvax hosts a variety of services.
- 1987 May 7, Selden E. Ball, Jr., “Re: Ethernet Terminal Concentrators”, in comp.protocols.tcp-ip (Usenet):
- CMU/TEK TCP/IP software uses an excessive amount of cpu resources for terminal support both outbound, when accessing another system, and inbound, when the local system is hosting a session.
Translations
perform the role of a host
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computing: run software for a remote user or process
|
See also
Etymology 2
From Middle English oost, borrowed from Old French ost, oste, hoste, from Latin hostis (“foreign enemy”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstis (as opposed to inimicus (“personal enemy”)). Doublet of guest.
Noun
host (plural hosts)
- A multitude of people arrayed as an army; used also in religious senses, as: Heavenly host (of angels)
- 1843 April, Thomas Carlyle, “ch. X, Plugson of Undershot”, in Past and Present, American edition, Boston, Mass.: Charles C[offin] Little and James Brown, published 1843, →OCLC, book III (The Modern Worker):
- Why, Plugson, even thy own host is all in mutiny: Cotton is conquered; but the ‘bare backs’ — are worse covered than ever!
- 1955 October 20, J[ohn] R[onald] R[euel] Tolkien, “chapter 4, The Field of Cormallen”, in The Return of the King: Being the Third Part of The Lord of the Rings , New York, N.Y.: Ballantine Books, published December 1978, →ISBN:
- All about the hosts of Mordor raged.
- 2001, Carlos Parada, Hesione 2, Greek Mythology Link:
- the invading host that had sailed from Hellas in more than one thousand ships was of an unprecedented size.
- A large number of items; a large inventory.
- The dealer stocks a host of parts for my Model A.
- 1802, William Wordsworth, I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud:
- I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils; […]
- 1836, The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction:
- A short time since, some friends drinking tea one summer evening at their residence near Maidenhead, with all the windows of the drawing-room open, there suddenly burst in a host of small flies, which covered the table and the furniture […]
- 2018 June 18, Phil McNulty, “Tunisia 1 – 2 England”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 21 April 2019:
- England ran Tunisia ragged in that spell but were punished for missing a host of chances when Ferjani Sassi equalised from the penalty spot against the run of play after Kyle Walker was penalised for an elbow on Fakhreddine Ben Youssef.
- 2020 July 29, Ian Prosser discusses with Paul Stephen, “Rail needs robust and strategic plans”, in Rail, page 38:
- In the immediate term, there is a host of new operating procedures to be developed and to become familiarised with, in accordance with social distancing.
Derived terms
Translations
multitude of people arrayed as an army
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large number of items
Etymology 3
From Middle English host, oist, ost, from Old French hoiste, from Latin hostia (“sacrificial victim”). Doublet of hostie.
Noun
host (plural hosts)
- (Christianity) The consecrated bread of the Eucharist.
- 1978, John Lydon (lyrics and music), “Religion II”, performed by Public Image Ltd.:
- Do you pray to the Holy Ghost when you suck your host? / Do you read who's dead in the Irish Post?
Derived terms
Translations
consecrated bread — see also communion wafer
|
See also
Anagrams
Catalan
Etymology
Inherited from Old Catalan ost, from Latin hostis, from Proto-Italic *hostis, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstis (“guest, stranger”).
Pronunciation
Noun
host f (plural hosts)
See also
References
- “host” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “host”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
- “host” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “host” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Czech
Etymology
Inherited from Old Czech host, from Proto-Slavic *gostь.
Pronunciation
Noun
host m anim (feminine hostka)
- guest
- Host do domu, Bůh do domu.
- A guest into the house, God into the house. (old proverb, meaning: respect should be shown to guests)
- Host a ryba třetí den smrdí.
- The guest and the fish smell the third day.
Usage
The archaic plural instrumental is hostmi.
Declension
Derived terms
Related terms
Further reading
- host in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
- host in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989
- host in Internetová jazyková příručka
Dutch
Etymology 1
Pronunciation
Noun
host m (plural hosts, diminutive hostje n)
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From hossen.
Pronunciation
Verb
host
- inflection of hossen:
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology 1
Related to hoste ("to cough").
Pronunciation
Noun
host n (definite singular hostet, indefinite plural host, definite plural hosta or hostene)
Usage notes
- Prior to a 2020 spelling revision, this noun was also considered masculine.
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
Noun
host m (definite singular hosten, indefinite plural hoster, definite plural hostene)
Synonyms
Etymology 3
Verb
host
- imperative of hoste
References
- “host” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology 1
Related to hosta, hoste ("to cough").
Noun
host n (definite singular hostet, indefinite plural host, definite plural hosta)
Etymology 2
Noun
host m (definite singular hosten, indefinite plural hostar, definite plural hostane)
Synonyms
Etymology 3
Verb
host
- imperative of hosta
References
- “host” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Old Czech
Etymology
Inherited from Proto-Slavic *gostь.
Pronunciation
Noun
host m pers (feminine hosti)
Declension
Declension of host (i-stem)
| singular | dual | plural | |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | host | hosti | hostie |
| genitive | hosti | hosťú | hostí |
| dative | hosti | hostma | hostem |
| accusative | host, hosti | hosti | hosti |
| vocative | hosti | hosti | hostie |
| locative | hosti | hosťú | hostech |
| instrumental | hostem | hostma | hostmi |
See also Appendix:Old Czech nouns and Appendix:Old Czech pronunciation.
Derived terms
Related terms
Descendants
- Czech: host
Further reading
- Jan Gebauer (1903–1916) “host”, in Slovník staročeský (in Czech), Prague: Česká grafická společnost "unie", Česká akademie císaře Františka Josefa pro vědy, slovesnost a umění
Polish
Etymology
Borrowed from English host. Doublet of gość.
Pronunciation
Noun
host m inan
- (networking) host (computer attached to a network)
Declension
Declension of host
Noun
host m pers (female equivalent hostessa)
- host, promotional model (person hired to greet customers and guests of a store, hotel, or institution, and advertise goods or provide assistance, giving the necessary information or pointing the way)
Declension
Declension of host
Noun
host m pers
- (slang) host (owner of a house, apartment, or guesthouse, as opposed to people renting premises from them)
- Synonym: gospodarz
Declension
Declension of host
Further reading
- host in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- host in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Portuguese
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English host.
Pronunciation
Noun
host m (plural hosts)
- (networking) host (computer attached to a network)
Slovene
Noun
hóst
Spanish
Etymology
Borrowed from English host. Doublet of huésped.
Pronunciation
Noun
host m or f (plural hosts)
Swedish
Interjection
host