noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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Received-Pronunciation:/ˈhɪləɹi tɜːm/
General-American:/ˈhɪləɹi tɝm/
Australia:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The second term of the legal year, running from January to March or April, during which the upper courts of England and Wales, and Ireland, sit to hear cases.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: law
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
The second academic term of the universities of Oxford and Dublin, and other educational institutions, running from January to March; equivalent to Lent term at the University of Cambridge. The term was modelled after the legal term, but does not begin and end on the same dates.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: education
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
Hilary + term. The name Hilary is from the Latin Hilarius (“Latin name of Saint Hilary of Poitiers”), hilarius (“more cheerful, more joyful”), from hilarē (“cheerful, joyful”), from hilaris (“cheerful, light-hearted, lively”), from Ancient Greek ἱλαρός (hilarós, “cheerful, glad, happy, joyful, merry”), from ἵλαος (hílaos, “gracious, merciful, propitious; gentle, kind, mild”). The feast day of Saint Hilary of Poitiers (c. 310 – c. 367), 13 January, occurs during this term.