Bosworth Toller's

Anglo-Saxon

Dictionary online

æ
þ

mearu

(adj.)
Grammar
mearu, <b>mæru, meru, myru;</b> adj.

Tender ⬩ soft ⬩ delicate

Entry preview:

Blód fleów of hire ðæm merwan líchoman, Shrn. 101, 22. Genim ðás wyrte swá mearwe take this plant as young and tender as possible, Herb. 89, 1; Lchdm. i. 192, 8, 12. Mearawa tenera, gracilia, Hpt. Gl. 457, 42.

Linked entry: myrwa

þrinness

(n.)
Grammar
þrinness, þriness, e; f.

Trinity

Entry preview:

Trinity, mostly in the special sense the Trinity Ðæs mannes sáwl hæfð ðære hálgan þrynnysse anlícnysse; for ðan ðe heó hæfð on hire ðreó ðing ...

Linked entry: þryness

for-fón

to take away ⬩ to seize ⬩ to anticipate

Entry preview:

Ðá arn se ealda wið hire weardes mid gebígedum cneówum tó þon ꝥ hé hine on þá eorþan ástrehte . . . Heó þá þone ealdan forene forféng, and him ne geþafode fulfremodlíce on þá eorðan ástreccan, Hml. S. 23 b, 605. Sý forne forfangen preoccupetur, An.

ge-laþian

(v.)
Entry preview:

Goth. ga-laþón to take in a stranger Ne mæg nán wíf hire bóndan forbeódan ꝥ hé ne móte intó his cotan gelógian (gelaðyan, v. l. ) ꝥ ꝥ hé wille, Ll. Th. i. 418, 24

Linked entry: laþian

heáh-fæder

Entry preview:

Ox. 3720. a patriarch in a heathen community Hire ( St. Margaret's ) fæder wæs hǽþenra monna heáhfæder (of ꝥ heðene folc patriarke ant prince, Marh. 2, 14; patriarch he was wel hei, Marg. 4; erat gentilium patriarcha et idola adorabat, Hml.

weddian

(v.)
Grammar
weddian, p. ode

To engage, covenant, undertake ⬩ to engage ⬩ to wed, betroth, espouse

Entry preview:

Grammar weddian, in reference to either taking or giving in marriage, to wed, betroth, espouse Gif hý ǽlces þinges sammǽle beón, ðonne fón mágas tó and weddian heora mágan tó wífe and tó rihtlífe ðam ðe hire girude, L. Edm. B. 6; Th. i. 254, 20.

Linked entry: be-weddian

dulmúnus

(n.)
Grammar
dulmúnus, gen. pl. dulmúna; m. The war-ship of the Greeks, which king Alfred assures us would hold a thousand men; longa nāvis. These ships were the μακρὰ πλοῖα or νῆες μακραί, generally called in Greek ὁ δρόμων, ωνος, m. the light war-vessel of the Greeks. They were the longæ nāves the long war-ships of the Romans, which had often more than fifty rowers. The Romans called their vessel drŏmo, ōnis, defining it as a fast rowing vessel, evidently deriving their word from the Greek δρόμων, Cod. Just. 1, 27, 1, § 8; Cassiod. Var. 5, 17, init. where it is described as 'trĭrēme vehĭcŭlum rēmōrum tantum nŭmĕrum prōdens, sed hŏmĭnum făcies dīlĭgenter abscondens.' Some suppose that Alfred derived his word dulmúnus from the Icel. drómundr, m. which Egilsson, in his Lexĭcon Poëtĭcum, Hafniæ, 8vo. 1860, explains 'nāves grandior, cūjus gĕnĕris tantum extra regiōnes septemtrionāles, ut in mări mediterrāneo, mentio fit,' S.E. i. 582, 3, Orkn. 82, 1, 3. Vigfusson, in his Icelandic-English Dictionary, 4to. Oxford, 1869-1874, in drómundr gives only the Latin and Greek, and O. H. Ger. drahemond as cognates. What Orosius, calls longas nāves, Alfred translates dulmúnus in Anglo-Saxon. As we read in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of A.D. 897; Th. i. 174, 4, Hét Ælfréd cyng timþrian lang-scipu ongén ða æscas king Alfred commanded to build long-ships against-, those ships, v. ÆSC IV.-Alfred, in his translation of Orosius, says
Entry preview:

Ǽr he [Ercol] ongan mid Creáca scypum, ðe mon dulmúnus hǽt, ðe man segþ ðæt in scip mǽge in þúsend manna before he [Hercules] began with Grecian ships, which are called dulmunus, of which it is said that one ship can hold a thousand men, Ors. 1, 10; Bos

ofer

Entry preview:

Man bær þone ele hire. Þá wæs se ele wexende ofer ealne þone weg (all the while they were carrying it ), Hml. S. 31, 1123.

hám

(n.; adv.)
Grammar
hám, es; m.

Home, house, abode, dwelling, residence, habitation, house with land, estate, property ⬩ domus, domicilium, prædium, villa, mansio, possessio ⬩ a village ⬩ a dwelling-place ⬩ an abode, world, this world ⬩ home ⬩ domus, domicilium, patria

Entry preview:

Hig cíptun ealle hire hámas vendebant omnia prædia sua, Gen. 47, 20. On hira hámon in possessionibus suis, 48, 6.

weorold-líc

(adj.)
Grammar
weorold-líc, adj.
Entry preview:

Ne seó eorþe ǽnigre worldlícre frætwednesse onfón wolde, seoþþan hire ða hálgan fét úres Drihtnes on stódan, Blickl. Homl. 127, 3. On woruldlícum wuldre scínende, Homl. Th. i. 62, 27. Tó forsewennysse woruldlícra ǽhta, 60, 25: Exon.

á-bítan

Entry preview:

Add: to lacerate with the teeth, mangle, tear to pieces, of animals Seó leó ábít ǽrest hire ládteów primus lacer dente cruento domitor Bt. 25 ; F. 88, 13. Micel draca ábát ðone þriddan dǽl ðæs folces, Shrn. 88, 23.

á-rǽdan

(v.)
Grammar
á-rǽdan, p. -réd and -rǽdde; pp. -rǽden and -rǽd(ed).
Entry preview:

H. 181. 17. to read what is written Næs ꝥ wel ꝥ þú self árǽddest þá stafas ofer hire birgene, Ap. Th. 26, 10. Se biscop orationem ofer me árǽdde, Bd. 5, 3; Sch. 566, 4. Þæt yrfegewrit man árǽdde beforan eallum Westseaxena witum. Þá hit árǽd wæs.

for-gán

(v.)

to forgo ⬩ to abstain from ⬩ go without ⬩ to abstain from

Entry preview:

Heó ðá scearpnesse dysiglicra sprǽca on hire ágenre tungan ná bebeáh ne ne foreóde linguae procacitatem atque stultiloquium non declinavit, Gr. D. 340, 17. Ðæt mon ðá lytlan forgá and ðá miclan dó, Past. 439, 23. Man forgá þýfðe, Ll. Th. i. 210, 3.

Linked entry: for-gangan

heord-rǽden

Grammar
heord-rǽden, heord-rǽdenn.

watching over ⬩ a guard ⬩ watch

Entry preview:

Ofer dohter gálfulle fzstna heordrǽdene (keep a sure watch over a shameless daughter, Ecclus. 42, II), 177, 3. watching over animals, care of a herdsman Hire hyrdeman ðurh holdrǽdene sume ác ástáh and his orf lǽswode . . . and hé hearde feóll gewát of

Linked entries: hird-ness hird-ræden

gærsum

(n.)
Grammar
gærsum, es; m. n. Substitute: gærsurna(-e), an; m. (f.): gærsum, es; m.: e; f. , and add

treasure ⬩ an article of value ⬩ treasures

Entry preview:

Hí bereafedan hí æt eallon þan gærsaman þe heó áhte, þá wǽron unátellendlice (nam of hire call ꝥ heó áhte on golde and on seolfre and on unásecgendlicum þingum, v. l.), 1043; P. 163, 35.

á-scúfan

to drive away ⬩ repel ⬩ to expel ⬩ to drive forward ⬩ impel ⬩ overthrow ⬩ to give up

Entry preview:

Ǽlc gesceaft onscunað ꝥ ꝥ hire wiþerweard biþ, and tiolaþ ꝥ hit him ꝥ from áscúfe, Bt. 16, 3; F. 56, 5. to expel Beó út áscofen trudatur, An. Ox. 823. Of his cyneríce áscofen, Hml. Th. i. 488, 16. Hí beóð út áscofan exterminabuntur, Ps. L. 36, 11.

ge-þæf

Entry preview:

Hú hé his ágene unðeáwas ongietan wille and hira geþæf bión (cf. (?) gerest ðæt mód hit orsorglíce on ðǽre fortrúwunga, 463, 10 : both passages refer to the same subject) how he will recognize his own faults, and yet wish for no change in them (?

bión

(v.)
Grammar
bión, ic bió, bióm, he bióþ, pl. bióþ, bieþ, biaþ; subj. bió, bie

to be ⬩ esse, existere, fieri

Entry preview:

Ne mæg hira ǽnig bútan óðrum bión nor can any of them exist without the others, Bt. Met. Fox 20, 290; Met. 20, 145: 11, 102; Met. 11, 51: Bt. 33, 4; Fox 130, 26: Th. Diplm. A. D. 804; 459, 16. Ðonne bióþ brocene then will be broken, Beo.

Linked entries: biaþ bieþ bió bióm bióþ

blótan

(v.)
Grammar
blótan, ic blóte, ðú blótest, blétst, he blóteþ, blét, pl. blótaþ; p. ic, he bleót, ðú bleóte, pl. bleóton; pp. blóten; v. a.

To sacrifice, to kill for a sacrifice ⬩ immolare, sacrificare ⬩ sacrificare

Entry preview:

Ða burhleóde on Cartaina bleóton [bliotan MS.] men hira godum the inhabitants of Carthage sacrificed men to their gods, Ors. cont. 4, 4; Bos. 11, 32. Ðæt hine mon ǽnigum godum blóte that a man sacrifice him to any gods, Ors. 1, 8; Bos. 31, 11.

Linked entry: a-blótan

wíc-stów

(n.)
Grammar
wíc-stów, e ; f.
Entry preview:

Bútan híra wícstówe, 33, 7. Bútan wícstówe, Lev. 10, 4. Ceósaþ eów wícstówe castra ponetis, Ex. 14, 2. On ðǽm wícstówum in castris Persarum, Ors. 3, 9; Swt. 126, 5. Ǽr hé ða wícstówa bereáfian mehte, Swt. 128, 9.

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.