seel

S1E1E1L1
/siːl/

adjective

Good; fortunate; opportune; happy.

“the seel of the day”

OriginMiddle English sel ← Old English *sǣle ← Proto-Germanic *sēliz →
UncommonScrabble 4
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Meanings

seel1

adjectiveseel (comparative more seel, superlative most seel)

comparative more seel · superlative most seel

  1. obsoleteGood; fortunate; opportune; happy.

seel2

nounseel (plural seels)

plural seels · alternative seal

  1. UKdialectalGood fortune; happiness; bliss.
  2. UKdialectalOpportunity; time; season.

    the seel of the day

seel3

verbseel (third-person singular simple present seels, present participle seeling, simple past and past participle seeled)

present singular third person seels · participle present seeling · participle past seeled · past seeled

  1. falconryTo sew together the eyelids of a young hawk.

    Hey who does blindly soar at Rhodalind[…] Mounts, like seel'd doves, still higher[…]

    1651, William Davenant, Gondibert
  2. broadlyTo blind.

seel4

verbseel (third-person singular simple present seels, present participle seeling, simple past and past participle seeled)

present singular third person seels · participle present seeling · participle past seeled · past seeled

  1. intransitiveobsoleteTo roll on the waves in a storm.

    when a Ship seels or rowls in foul Weather

    c. 1611, Walter Raleigh, Observations on the Navy and Sea Service
nounseel (plural seels)

plural seels

  1. obsoleteThe rolling or agitation of a ship in a storm.

    The ship hulls as the billows flow; / And all aboard at ev'ry seel, / Like drunkards, on the hatches reel.

    1636, G[eorge] S[andys], “(please specify the page)”, in A Paraphrase upon the Psalmes of David. And upon the Hymnes Dispersed throughout the Old and New Testaments, London: [Andrew Hebb […]], →OCLC

Origin

seel · adjective

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sel-
  2. Proto-Germanic*sēliz“good, happy”
  3. Old English*sǣle“good, fortunate, happy”
  4. Middle Englishsel
  5. Englishseel

From Middle English sel, sele, from Old English *sǣle (“good, fortunate, happy”) (attested in Old English unsǣle (“evil, wicked”)), from Proto-Germanic *sēliz (“good, happy”), from Proto-Indo-European *sel-, *sēl- (“to calm, quiet, be favourable”). Cognate with Danish sæl (“blissful”), Dutch zalig (“blissful”), Gothic 𐍃𐌴𐌻𐍃 (sēls, “good, kind, useful”), Icelandic sæll (“blissful”), Latin sōlor (“to comfort, console”), Swedish säll (“blissful”).

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seel · noun

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sel-
  2. Proto-Germanic*sēliz“luck, joy”
  3. Old Englishsǣl“time, occasion, a fit time, season, opportunity, the definite time at which an event should take place, time as in bad or good times, circumstances, condition, position, happiness, joy, good fortune, good time, prosperity”
  4. Middle Englishsele
  5. Englishseel

From Middle English sele, sel, from Old English sǣl (“time, occasion, a fit time, season, opportunity, the definite time at which an event should take place, time as in bad or good times, circumstances, condition, position, happiness, joy, good fortune, good time, prosperity”), from Proto-Germanic *sēliz (“luck, joy”), from Proto-Indo-European *sel-, *sēl- (“to calm, quiet, be favourable”). Cognate with Icelandic sæla (“bliss”), Dutch zalig (“blissful, blessed”). More at silly.

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seel · verb

  1. Latincilium“eyelid, eyelash”
  2. Old Frenchsiller
  3. Middle Englishsilen
  4. Englishseel

From Middle English silen, from Old French siller, ciller (“to sew up the eyelids of, hoodwink, wink”), from cil (“eyelid”), from Latin cilium (“eyelid, eyelash”).

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seel · verb, noun

  1. Proto-West Germanic*sīgan“to drop”
  2. Englishseel

Ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *sīgan (“to drop”). Compare Low German sielen (“to lead off water”), French siller (“to run ahead, to make headway”), and English sile (transitive verb).

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Translations

French ciller
  • cillerTo sew together the eyelids of a young hawk
Polish zszywać oczy, zszyć oczy
  • zszywać oczyTo sew together the eyelids of a young hawk
  • zszyć oczyTo sew together the eyelids of a young hawk
Russian завя́зывать глаза́
  • завя́зывать глаза́ (zavjázyvatʹ)To sew together the eyelids of a young hawk

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with seel

realmobilefeeldealsteelappealwheelsealmealNeilrevealreelstealheelpeelhealnealsteelerepealtealsurrealcelalleleLille
All rhymes →

Sounds the same

sealsealsealsealseal

Anagrams

elseleessleesele
Cite this entry
APA

seel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seel

MLA

“seel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seel. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “seel,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seel.

Source: seel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.