Meanings
hemmel1
plural hemmels
- NorthumbriaUKdialectalA shed or hovel for cattle.
Cattle kept in hemmels should always have their food may be stated that the roofs of all the buildings should given to them in the sheds
1864 June, John Ewart, “The Profitable Management of Farms in the Vicinity of Large Towns”, in The Farmer's Magazine
hemmel2
plural hemmels
- UKYorkshiredialectalA handrail, especially one fitted on one side of a planked or wooden bridge.
The bridge was narrow, with barely enough room for one to cross at a time. So they barred her way, the leader clutching the hemmel (handrail) on either side.
1989, Ken Radford, Fire Burn, page 50
Origin
hemmel · noun
- Scotshemmel
- Englishhemmel
From Scots hemmel, hammel, dialectal English hemble (“hovel, stable, shed”), perhaps allied to Dutch hemel (“heaven, canopy”), German Himmel. Compare English heaven.
More words from Scots
Full word history & related roots →hemmel · noun
- Swedishhammel“little bar or beam”
- Englishhemmel
Compare dialectal Swedish hammel (“little bar or beam”).
More words from Swedish
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
hemmel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hemmel
“hemmel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hemmel. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hemmel,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hemmel.
Source: hemmel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.