heigh-ho

plural heigh-hos

1. Colaptes auratus, northern flicker.

present singular third person heigh-hos · participle present heigh-hoing · participle past heigh-hoed · past heigh-hoed

1. intransitiveTo chant "heigh-ho".

   1 more example

   1927, Porterfield, William M., Bamboo and its uses in China, Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information, Booklet Series 2, p.40. Cited in David Farrelly, The Book of Bamboo, p.25; Sierra Club Books, 1984. Big bamboo poles are used for carrying heavy loads in China. In the cities one hears the familiar antiphonal “heigh-ho'ing”, indicating that a heavy load is being moved somewhere. The heavier the load, the louder and more agonized the chant.

1. Used as a cadence-count used for synchronized walking, marching, pulling, lifting, etc.

   Heigh-ho the dairy-o, the farmer in the dell...

   1 more example

   Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it's off to work we go, ...

   1937, Larry Morey (lyricist), Heigh-Ho, song in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)

2. alternativeAlternative spelling of hey ho.