Learning new verbs is a great way to boost your vocabulary and express your thoughts more clearly. In this lesson, we’re going to explore 50 powerful verbs that start with H—and trust me, they’re helpful, handy, and full of life!
Just imagine you’re writing a story, having a conversation, or just trying to sound more confident; these “H” verbs can add energy and variety to your sentences. From simple words like help to stronger ones like hustle and highlight, you’ll discover new ways to grow your English vocabulary.
Why Focus on Verbs That Start with H?
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Learning verbs by their first letter is a smart and fun way to grow your vocabulary step by step. It helps your brain organize words better, and that makes them easier to remember.
The letter H brings us a bunch of useful and powerful verbs that we use in daily life. Think about words like help, hope, handle, and hug—they all start with H and are perfect for expressing actions, feelings, and ideas.
Another great reason? When you learn verbs in groups like this, you build strong language habits. It becomes easier to find the right word when you’re speaking or writing. And when your vocabulary grows, your confidence grows too!
50 Powerful Verbs That Start with H
Here’s a helpful table of 50 powerful verbs that start with H, arranged in alphabetical order. Each verb comes with a simple meaning and an example sentence to help you understand how to use it in real life.
Verb | Meaning | Example Sentence |
---|---|---|
Hack | To cut roughly or quickly | He used a knife to hack through the thick bushes. |
Hackle | To argue or bargain strongly | The shoppers hackled over the price. |
Hail | To greet or call out | They hailed the taxi on the busy street. |
Hallucinate | To see things that aren’t real | The patient began to hallucinate due to the fever. |
Halt | To stop something immediately | The police officer told the car to halt. |
Hamper | To slow down or block progress | The rain will hamper our outdoor plans. |
Handle | To manage or deal with something | She knows how to handle stressful situations. |
Hang | To attach or suspend something | I will hang the picture on the wall. |
Happen | To take place or occur | What will happen if we don’t study? |
Harbor | To hide or protect someone or something | The village harbored the lost travelers. |
Harden | To make something strong or less soft | Cold weather can harden the soil. |
Harm | To hurt or damage someone or something | Too much sun can harm your skin. |
Harness | To control and make use of something | We must harness the power of wind for energy. |
Harvest | To gather crops or resources | Farmers harvest wheat in the summer. |
Hatch | To come out of an egg or create a plan | The chicks hatched this morning. |
Hate | To strongly dislike something or someone | I hate waking up early on weekends. |
Haul | To pull or drag something heavy | He hauled the heavy bag up the stairs. |
Haunt | To visit or disturb repeatedly | That scary dream still haunts me. |
Heal | To make healthy again | The medicine helped heal her wound. |
Hear | To listen or become aware of sound | I can hear music from the next room. |
Heat | To make something warm or hot | Let’s heat the soup before dinner. |
Help | To assist or support someone | Can you help me with my homework? |
Hesitate | To pause before doing something | Don’t hesitate to ask questions. |
Hide | To keep out of sight | The cat likes to hide under the bed. |
Hiccup | To make a sudden breath noise | I always hiccup when I laugh too much. |
Highlight | To point out something important | The teacher will highlight the key points. |
Hijack | To take control by force | The robbers tried to hijack the vehicle. |
Hinder | To make progress difficult | The noise will hinder my focus. |
Hint | To suggest something without saying it directly | She hinted that she wanted a gift. |
Hire | To give someone a job | The company will hire more workers next month. |
Hiss | To make a sharp sss sound | The snake hissed when it was angry. |
Hitch | To attach or connect | They hitched the trailer to the truck. |
Hit | To strike something with force | He hit the ball over the fence. |
Hoard | To collect and keep too much | Some people hoard old magazines. |
Hold | To carry or keep something | Please hold my bag while I tie my shoes. |
Honor | To show respect or recognition | We honor our heroes on special days. |
Hook | To catch or connect with a hook | He hooked the fish and pulled it out of the water. |
Hop | To jump lightly or quickly | The bunny hopped across the grass. |
Hope | To wish for something good to happen | I hope we win the game. |
Hoot | To shout or laugh loudly | The kids hooted with laughter at the joke. |
House | To give someone shelter | The shelter houses over 100 people. |
Hover | To stay in one place in the air | The drone hovered above the ground. |
Hovercraft | To travel using a hovercraft (air vehicle) | They hovered across the water in a hovercraft. |
Hug | To wrap your arms around someone | She gave her friend a big hug. |
Hum | To sing without words | He likes to hum while working. |
Humble | To lower someone’s pride or importance | The loss humbled the proud team. |
Hunt | To chase and try to catch or kill | Lions hunt in groups. |
Hurtle | To move quickly with force | The car hurtled down the road. |
Hurry | To move quickly | Hurry up or we’ll be late! |
Hurt | To cause pain or injury | I hurt my finger playing basketball. |
Hypnotize | To control with suggestion or charm | The magician tried to hypnotize the audience. |
Final Thoughts
Learning new verbs is one of the best ways to build your English skills—and today, you’ve discovered 50 powerful verbs that start with H! From simple everyday actions like help and hug to more advanced ones like hinder and harness, these words can make your speaking and writing much stronger and more interesting.
The more verbs you know, the easier it becomes to express your thoughts clearly and confidently. So don’t stop here—try using these H-verbs in your own sentences, stories, or conversations. The more you practice, the better you’ll get!
✏️ Worksheet: Practice Your H-Verbs!
🔹Part A: Match the Verbs with Their Meanings
Match the verbs on the left with the correct meaning on the right. Write the correct letter next to the number.
No. | Verb | Meaning |
---|---|---|
1. | Hinder | A. To offer help or support |
2. | Hatch | B. To stop or block progress |
3. | Hug | C. To come out of an egg |
4. | Help | D. To wrap your arms around someone |
5. | Hurry | E. To move quickly |
Answers:
- ___ 2. ___ 3. ___ 4. ___ 5. ___
🔹Part B: Fill in the Blanks
Use the correct verb that starts with H to complete each sentence. Choose from the word bank below:
Word Bank: hear, harvest, hide, hit, hop
- Rabbits like to _______ across the grass.
- I can _______ someone knocking on the door.
- Farmers _______ rice in the fall.
- Please don’t _______ your little brother!
- Let’s _______ behind the curtain during hide-and-seek.
🔹Part C: Make Your Own Sentences
Choose any 3 verbs that start with H and write your own sentences. Try to make them fun or creative!
- Verb: ___________
Sentence: _____________________________________________ - Verb: ___________
Sentence: _____________________________________________ - Verb: ___________
Sentence: _____________________________________________
🔹Part D: Word Scramble
Unscramble the letters to find the correct verb. All verbs start with H!
- PRUHY → ______________
- TLHA → ______________
- DEALHN → ______________
- TGHILIHH → ______________
- HCOA → ______________
🔹Bonus Challenge: Verb Hunt!
Look around your room or classroom and list 5 actions you see happening. Try to describe each using a verb that starts with H!
Example: My friend is humming a tune.

Azizul Hakim is the founder & CEO of englishfinders.com. He is a passionate writer, English instructor, and content creator. He has completed his graduation and post-graduation in English language and literature.