dell

Meaning

Noun

• A valley, especially in the form of a natural hollow, small and deep.
• A young woman; a wench.

Related

Similar words

• dale
• dingle
• vale
• valley

Origin

• From Middle English delle, del, from Old English dell ("small dale"), from Proto-Germanic *daljō ("a hollow, abyss"), diminutive of Proto-Germanic *dalą ("valley, dale"), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰol-, *dʰel-. Cognate with Dutch del ("a dell"), German Delle ("a hollow").
• Origin obscure. Originally thieves' cant. Compare Dutch del.