hella
1 of 2adverb
ˈhe-lə 
slang
: very, extremely
And though she's excited, she's also hella scared.
Mimi Valdes, Vibe, October 2002
Mimi Valdes, Vibe, October 2002If you need someone to impress kids with a hella loud motorcycle, great. Kase Wickman, MTV News, 17 June 2015
Kase Wickman, MTV News, 17 June 2015hella
2 of 2adjective
ˈhe-lə
slang
: a lot of
You've got to keep in mind that the rematch is more money. They're making hella money now, but the rematch is more money, or even a draw of a good fight is more money. Deontay Wilder, quoted in The Dallas Morning News, 3 May 2015
Deontay Wilder, quoted in The Dallas Morning News, 3 May 2015
Word History
Etymology
Adverb
probably contracted from hell of a as an adjectival intensifier (though the shift in syntactic category is unexplained)
Adjective
probably after hella entry 1
Note: Use as a quantifier might suggest that this was the original function of hella, though attestations in this sense are later and less common.
First Known Use
Adverb
1987, in the meaning defined above
Adjective
1991, in the meaning defined above
- a thing or two
- a thorn in someone's flesh
- a thorn in someone's side
- a thorn in the flesh
- a thorn in the side
- a thorn in the/someone's flesh/side
- a thought
- a throw
- A to Z
- a to z's
- a touch
- a touch of
- a tough act to follow
- a tough nut
- a tough nut to crack
- a tough row to hoe
- a tough/hard row to hoe
- a toy in her hands
- a toy in the hands of
- a treat
- a trifle
- a twinkle in one's eye
- a vin
- a vinculo
- a vinculo matrimonii