heel
noun /hiːl/
/hiːl/
Idioms 
enlarge image[countable] the back part of the foot below the ankle- Apply the cream to dry, cracked heels before bed.
- on your heels She took a potato from the fire and sat back on her heels.
Extra ExamplesTopics Bodyb2- The punch rocked him back on his heels.
- Despite severe pain from a badly bruised heel, he ran the race of his life.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + heel- lean back on
- sit back on
- squat on
- …
- click
- injury
- at your heels
- under the heel
- close on somebody’s heels
- hard on somebody’s heels
- hot on somebody’s heels
- …
- [countable] the part of a sock, etc. that covers the heelOxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
- low
- high
- spike
- …
- catch
- bar
enlarge image[countable] the raised part on the bottom of a shoe, boot, etc. that makes the shoe, etc. higher at the back- shoes with a low/high heel
- a stiletto heel
- He crushed the cigarette under the heel of his shoe.
- The sergeant clicked his heels and walked out.
Homophones heal | heel | he'llheal heel he'llcompare sole/hiːl//hiːl/- heal verb
- Salt can heal wounds.
- heel noun
- Her heel caught in the stairs and she tumbled down.
- he'll short form he will
- He'll arrive in a minute!
Extra ExamplesTopics Clothes and Fashionb2- She caught her heel and tripped on the step.
- I took my shoes to a heel bar to have them repaired.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- low
- high
- spike
- …
- catch
- bar
- (in adjectives) having the type of heel mentioned
- high-heeled shoes
- heels[plural] a pair of women’s shoes that have high heels
- She doesn't often wear heels.
- [countable] heel of your hand/palm the raised part of the inside of the hand where it joins the wrist
- [countable] (old-fashioned, informal) a man who is unpleasant to other people and cannot be trusted
part of foot
part of sock/shoe
-heeled
shoes
part of hand
unpleasant man
Word Originnoun Old English hēla, hǣla, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch hiel.
Idioms
at/on somebody’s heels
- following closely behind somebody
- He fled from the stadium with the police at his heels.
- She came up the path with two little dogs at her heels.
bring somebody/something to heel
- to force somebody to obey you and accept discipline
- a non-violent means of bringing the rebels to heel
- to make a dog come close to you
come to heel
- (of a person) to agree to obey somebody and accept their ordersTopics Discussion and agreementc2
- (of a dog) to come close to the person who has called it
cool your heels
- (informal) to have to wait for somebody/something
dig your heels/toes in
- to refuse to do something or to change your mind about something
- They dug in their heels and would not lower the price.
drag your feet/heels
- to be deliberately slow in doing something or in making a decision related noun foot-draggingTopics Preferences and decisionsc2
hard/hot on somebody’s/something’s heels
- very close behind somebody/something; very soon after something
- He turned and fled with Peter hot on his heels.
- They reached the border with the police hot on their heels.
- Further successes came hot on the heels of her first best-selling novel.
- News of rising unemployment followed hard on the heels of falling export figures.
head over heels in love
- loving somebody very much
- He's fallen head over heels in love with his boss.
kick your heels
- (British English) to have nothing to do while you are waiting for somebody/something
- We were kicking our heels, waiting for some customers.
kick up your heels
- (especially North American English, informal) to be relaxed and enjoy yourself
take to your heels
- to run away from somebody/something
tread on somebody’s heels
- to follow somebody closely
turn/spin on your heel
- to turn around suddenly so that you are facing in the opposite direction
- He turned on his heel and marched away angrily.
under the heel of somebody
- (literary) completely controlled by somebody
- The island spent several centuries under the heel of the British Empire.