anthill
UK[ˈænthɪl]US[ˈænthɪl]
n
a mound of earth, sand, etc., formed by ants in digging and building their nest.
Morpheme Breakdown
ant
hill
ant
hill
Etymology
the word 'anthill' is a transparent english compound formed from two native old english elements. the first element, 'ant', descends from the old english ǣmette, which has germanic origins and is related to the dutch mier and german ameise. the second element, 'hill', comes from the old english hyll, a common germanic word for a raised landform. the compound literally means 'a hill made by ants,' directly and logically describing the structure built by these social insects as their nest and colony. its formation follows the typical pattern of english noun-noun compounds where the first noun modifies the second.
Analysis
Structure: ant + hill
ant (from old english ǣmette, meaning the insect ant); hill (from old english hyll, meaning a natural elevation of the earth, smaller than a mountain).
Examples
the children watched the ants busily carrying crumbs into their anthill.
a large anthill can house thousands of insects in a complex network of tunnels.
he accidentally stepped on the anthill and was quickly covered in angry ants.