Home › Words › H › hiveshives/haɪvz/hives means itchy, swollen, red areas of the skin which can appear quickly in response to an allergen or due to other conditions.hives is pronounced /haɪvz/.EtymologyUncertain, but frequently connected with heave, even if such a derivation is phonologically difficult.nounItchy, swollen, red areas of the skin which can appear quickly in response to an allergen or due to other conditions.Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).Words closest in meaningBy meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.urticaria 91% match — Itchy, swollen, red areas of the skin which can appear quickly in response to an allergen or other conditions. vs hives →wheal 61% match — A small raised swelling on the skin, often itchy, caused by a blow from a whip or an insect bite etc. vs hives →urticariform 58% match — Resembling urticaria; that is, hives-like. vs hives →dermograph 57% match — An area of skin affected by dermography vs hives →dermatographia 57% match — A skin disorder in which the skin becomes raised and inflamed when stroked, scratched or rubbed. vs hives →angioedema 55% match — Swelling of the lower layers of the skin, often around the mouth, or of the mucosa or submucosa of the mouth or throat, which can appear quickly in response to an allergen or due to other conditions. vs hives →dermatograph 55% match — A wheal made by dermatographia. vs hives →urticarial 55% match — Relating to urticaria. vs hives →