Bosworth Toller's

Anglo-Saxon

Dictionary online

æ
þ

ǽg-

(prefix)
Grammar
ǽg-, either a contraction of the prefixes á, ǽ, with a g added, as ǽg, or derived from aa = á, áwa, ǽw. It is used in compound pronouns and adverbs, as ǽg-hwá, ǽg-hwǽr, ǽg-hwilc, etc; but, in its place, we also find the prefix á as,—á-hwǽr, á-hwilc, etc. Both ǽg- and á- impart to their compounds a sense of universality.

Ever ⬩ always ⬩ semper

Entry preview:

Ever, always; semper:

B

Grammar
B, THE sound of b is produced by the lips; hence it is called a labial consonant, and has the same sound in Anglo-Saxon as in English. In all languages, and especially in the dialects of cognate languages, the letters employing the same organs of utterance are continually interchanged. In Anglo-Saxon, therefore, we find that b interchanges with the other labials, f and
Entry preview:

p Ic hæbbe I have, he hæfþ he hath. When words are transferred into modern English, b is sometimes represented by f or v :-- Beber or befor a beaver; Ober, ofer, over. In comparing the Anglo-Saxon aspirated labial f with the corresponding letter in Old

ge-metfæst

Entry preview:

Hé is monþwǽre, nele láðes wiht ǽngum geæfnan, Pa. 31. sober, discreet, honest, orderly, v. ge-metfæstnys, ge-metlǽcan Ǽfestes lífes and gemetfæstes abbod religiosae ac modestae uitae abbas, Bd. 5, 12; Sch. 631, 23.

Linked entry: ge-metfæstlíce

ge-dígan

Entry preview:

Add: to escape danger, (i) used absolutely Seó wiht (a steer), gif hió gedýgeð, dúna briceð, gif hé tóbirsteð, bindeð cwice cf. the Latin riddle: Si vixero, rumpere colles incipiam, vivos moriens aut alligo multos, Prehn, p. 212), Ra. 39, 6. with acc

fleógan

to fly ⬩ to flee ⬩ to avoid

Entry preview:

Similar entries Cf. fleón, III: Se móna næfð nánre mihte wiht ꝥ hé þǽre nihte genipu mæge fleógan (flecgan, MS. ) pallida nocturnam nec praestat luna lucernam, Dom. L. 110

on-gin

(n.)
Grammar
on-gin, on-ginn, es; n.

a beginning ⬩ an attempt, undertaking, enterprise ⬩ action, proceeding ⬩ action, activity, active life, actions, endeavours

Entry preview:

Gif ðú gewítest ána from éþele, nis ðæt onginn wiht, 119, 2; Gú. 248. Ongin, 123, 22; Gú. 326. Be ðam onginne ðe hé ongan, ðæt wésten swá ána eardigan, Guthl. 4; Gdwin. 28, 7. Ðú miht æt Gode ábiddan ðæt ðú wilt wið ðæs drýg onginne, Blickl.

a-gǽlan

(v.)
Grammar
a-gǽlan, p. de; pp. ed.

To hinder ⬩ occupy ⬩ detain ⬩ delay ⬩ neglect ⬩ impedire ⬩ retardare ⬩ morari ⬩ negligere ⬩ To hesitate ⬩ be careless ⬩ cunctari ⬩ indili-gens esse

Entry preview:

To hesitate, be careless; cunctari, indili-gens esse He wihte ne agǽlde ðæs ðe þearf wæs þeódcyninges he was not careless about anything that was needful for the king, Chr. 1066; Th. 335, 15. col. 1; Edv. 33

Linked entry: a-gálan

un-fǽle

(adj.)
Grammar
un-fǽle, adj.

Evil ⬩ ill ⬩ bad

Entry preview:

Satiri vel fauni vel selini vel fauni ficarii unfǽle men, wudewásan, unfǽle wihtu, Wrt. Voc, i. 17, 20. Unfǽle men satyri vel fauni, wudewásan ficarii vel invii, 60, 23-4. [Gif þe unfele man his wille folgeð, and teð him to unwrenches, O. E.

un-dirne

(adj.)
Grammar
un-dirne, -dierne, -dyrne; adj.

Not hidden ⬩ discovered ⬩ revealed ⬩ manifest

Entry preview:

Nú is undyrne werum, hú ða wihte hátne sindon, 429, 19; Rä. 43, 15. Ic wordum wemde wyrd undyrne, Andr. Kmbl. 2959; An. 1482.

Linked entries: dirne un-derne un-dyrne

clǽnsian

(v.)
Grammar
clǽnsian, clénsian, to clǽnsianne; clǽnsiende; ode, ade; od, ad [clǽne clean, pure]

To CLEANSE, purify, chasten, clear oneself ⬩ mundare, purgare, castigare, se liberare

Entry preview:

Wih. 18; Th. i. 40, 14, 16: 19; Th. i. 40, 17: 20; Th. i. 40, 19: L. Eth. ii. 8; Th. i. 288, 19: ii. 9; Th. i. 290, 10. Hine geréfa clénsie let the reeve clear him, L. Wih. 22; Th. i. 42, 4

Linked entries: be-clǽnsian clǽnsnian clǽsnian clénsian

twi-hynde

(adj.)
Grammar
twi-hynde, adj. As applied to a person, of a rank for which the wergild was two hundred shillings; applied to the wergild, that must be paid for a person of such rank. As will be seen from the passages given below, the twihynde man was a
Entry preview:

ceorl Twelfhyndes mannes wer is twelf hund scyllinga. Twyhyndes mannes wer is twá hund sciłł. ( the article then deals with the case of the former, and concludes: Eal man sceal æt cyrliscum were be ðære mǽðe dón, ðe him tó gebyreþ, swá wé be twelfhyndum

A

(prefix)
Grammar
A, A. It is not necessary to speak of the form of what are often called Anglo-Saxon letters, as all Teutonic, Celtic, and Latin manuscripts of the same age are written in letters of the same form. There is one exception: the Anglo-Saxons had, with great propriety, two different letters for the two distinct sounds of our th: the hard þ in thin and sooth, and the soft ð in thine and soo
Entry preview:

the, vide Þ, þ. The indigenous Pagan alphabet of our Anglo-Saxon forefathers, called Runes, it must be particularly observed, not only represents our letters, but the names of the letters are significant. The Runes are chiefly formed by straight lines

Q

Grammar
Q, This letter occurs but seldom in Anglo-Saxon; in those native words where qu is now found, e. g. quick, quoth, cw or cu was written, cwic, cuic, cwæþ, cuæþ. In the glossary (belonging to the eighth century) given in Wrt. Voc. ii. 98 sqq. are six instances of words beginning with qu, and four others occur in the same volume; in the Blickling Gloss the form quémde glosses complacebam, and the foreign word
Entry preview:

reliquias retained its original form

-tig

(suffix)
Grammar
-tig, -ty, a numeral suffix in words denoting the decades; up to 60 such words are formed with a suffix only, from 60 to 120 hund is prefixed and tig suffixed, hund-seofon-tig, hund-twelf-tig. Other dialects make a distinction in the numerals at the same point. Gothic uses tigus (pl. tigjus) in the earlier, -téhund in the later, O. Saxon -tig in the earlier, while 70 is given by ant-siƀunta; in
Entry preview:

O. H. Ger. the two forms are -zug and -zó. In O. Frs. and Icel. the same forms are used throughout. Tig is another form of the root seen in ten (tehan, g for h according to Verner's Law)

ge-hygd

(n.)
Grammar
ge-hygd, -higd, -hýd, e; f : es; n.

Thought ⬩ cogitation ⬩ meditation ⬩ deliberation ⬩ consultation ⬩ cōgĭtātio ⬩ mĕdĭtātio ⬩ consĭlium

Entry preview:

Ne biþ ðǽr wiht forholen monna gehygda there shall be naught of men's cogitations concealed, Exon. 23 b; Th. 65, 15; Cri. 1055. On sefan gehygdum in the mind's thoughts, 39 b; Th. 130, 27; Gú. 444 : 81 a; Th. 305, 14; Fä. 88.

Linked entries: -hygd ge-higd ge-hýd

þearm-gewind

(n.)
Grammar
þearm-gewind, -wind, es; m. The words seem to mean 'that which enwraps the intestines,' cf. plecta wǽfelsa, gewynde, Hpt. Gl. 462, 64, but they are used to gloss jugulam (-um?), so should mean the collar-bone, or the hollow part of the neck above the collar-bone, or
Entry preview:

the throat Gescyld ðearmgewind (ðearmwind, lxxiv, 24), breóstbán, breóst tege jugulam, pectusculum, mamillas, Lchdm. i. lxxii, 1

on-sittan

(v.)

to occupy ⬩ to oppress (cf. colloquial to sit on a person) ⬩ to fear (taking like ondrǽdan a reflexive dative)

Entry preview:

Hé álýseþ þearfan ðæt him se welega ne mæg wiht onsittan liberavit pauperem a potente, Ps. Th. 71, 12. (with a different prefix, cf. O. H.

spówan

(v.)
Grammar
spówan, speów

To succeed. ⬩ to be successful ⬩ it succeeds with a person (dat.)

Entry preview:

Him wiht ne speów, Judth. Thw. 25, 23; Jud. 274: Beo. Th. 5701; B. 2854. Gesæh Pilatus ðæt him náuwiht speóu (spéua, Lind.) videns Pilatus quia nihil proficeret Mt. Kmbl. Rush. 27, 24. Him speówhwónlíce.Homl. Skt. i. 7, 94.

wǽge

(n.)
Grammar
wǽge, (see also wǽg), an; f.

a weight ⬩ a wey ⬩ an implement for weighing ⬩ a balance ⬩ scale

Entry preview:

Ǽlc ðæra ðinga ðe man wihð on wǽgan, Ælfc. Gr. 13; Zup. 84, 3. Áwegene on ánre wǽgan, Homl. Th. ii. 454, 23: 436, 12. On wǽgum (wégum, Ps. Surt. Spl.) in stateris, Ps. Lamb. 61, 10

Linked entries: wége wégi

hearga

(n.)
Grammar
hearga, an; m.

a grove ⬩ a temple ⬩ fane ⬩ an idol

Entry preview:

[For pl. hearga; f. substitute: a place sacred to a god, with an idol and an altar. a grove Hearga lucum (the word occurs among glosses to Aldhelm between one on Ald. 50, 25 and another on 50, 27: in the text between these lucum does not occur), Wrt.

Copyright

All the data provided here are free for any purpose. If you use the data for academic purposes, we ask that you kindly cite us as your source. In case you need a large portion of the dictionary data or you need it in a specific format, let us know through the contact form, we are happy to do custom database dumps for researchers.

How to cite

You can cite the entries of the online version of the dictionary, or you can cite the scanned pages of the original paper editions.

  • To cite the online version of the dictionary, click the icon right under the entry.
  • To cite the scanned paper version of the dictionary, click the "show/hide this scanned page" link under the entry, check the scan and use the citation information right above it.