ARMOUR

eorl-gewǣde
BT
eorl-gewǣde, es; a. [gewǣde clothing] Manly clothing, armour; vĭrīlis vestītus :-- Gyrede hine Beōwulf
eorlgewǣdum Beowulf clad himself in armour. Beo. Th. 2888; B. 1442.

BTs

CH

MDE

OED

Eorl
BT
EORL. es; m. I. an Anglo-Saxon nobleman of high rank, the yarl of the Danes, about the same as an
ealdorman. He who was in early times styled ealdorman, was afterwards denominated an earl; cŏmes,
sătelles princĭpis. This title, which was introduced by the Jutes of Kent, occurs frequently in the laws of
the kings of that district, the first mention of it being :-- Gif on eorles tūne man mannan ofslæhþ xii
scillinga gebēte if a man slay a man in an earl's town, let him make compensation with twelve shillings, L.
Ethb. 13; Th. i. 6, 9, 10. Its more general use among us dates from the later Scandinavian invasions, and
though originally only a title of honour, it became in later times one of office, nearly supplanting the older
and more Saxon one of 'ealdorman:' -- Swā we eāc settaþ be eallum hādum, ge ceorle ge eorle so also we
ordain for all degrees, whether to churl or earl, L. Alf. pol. 4; Th. i. 64, 3. Se eorl nolde nā gēþwsǣrian
the earl would not consent, Chr. 1051; Ing. 227, 13, 23: 228, 4, 28, 35, 36: 229, 10, 21, 25, 26. II. a man,
brave man, hero, general, leader, chief; vir, pŭgil, vir fortis, dux :-- Eorlas on cȳþþe men in the country.
Andr. Kmbl. 1467; An. 735. Him se Ebrisca eorl wīsade the Hebrew man [Lot] directed them. Cd. 112;
Th. 147, 24; Gen. 2444. Ða eorlas þrȳ, nom. pl. the three men, 95; Th. 123, 16; Gen. 2045. Eorlas wēnaþ
men think, 86; Th. 109, 22; Gen. 1826. Fōr eorlum before the people, 98; Th. 129, 1; Gen. 2137. þegna
and eorla of thanes and earls, Bt. Met. Fox 25, 15 ; Met. 25, 8. Geared gumum gold brittade, se eorl wæs
æðele Jared dispensed gold to the people, the man was noble. Cd. 59; Th. 72, 5; Gen. 1182. [Piers P. eerl:
Chauc. erl: R. Glouc. erles noblemen: Laym. eorl: Orm. eorless, pl: O. Sax. Hel. erl, m. a man, nobleman,
male offspring, boy: Icel. jarl, earl, m. a gentleman, nobleman, warrior, chief.]
BTs
eorl. Add: I. a man of rank or gentle birth :-- Eorl herus, An. Ox. 53, 6. Weorðscipes wyrðe, ǣlc be his
mǣðe, eorl and ceorl, þegen and þeōden, Ll. Th. i. 190, 13. Gif wið eorles birele man geligeð .xii. scill.
gebēte. Gif wið ceorles birelan man geligeð .vi. scillingum gebēte, 6, 11. Þrǣl wearð tō þegene, and ceorl
wearð tō eorle, 334, 8. II. used of Scandinavians, = Icel. jarl :-- Ælfred gefeaht wiþ þāra eorla getruman,
and þǣr wearþ Sidroc eorl ofslægen se alda, and Sidroc eorl se gioncga, and Ōsbearn eorl, and Hareld
eorl, Chr. 871; P. 70, 24-27 : 918; P. 98, 10, 20. IIa. of a Scandinavian acting with the English :-- Se cyng
betǣhte þā fyrde tō lǣdene Ealfrīce ealdorman and þōrode eorl, 992; P. 127, 11. III. as a title in England,
taking the place of ealdorman. [The transition may be illustrated by the following passages referring to
Oslac :-- Ōslāc fēng tō ealdordōme, Chr. 966; P. 119, 2. Ōslāc ealdorman, 963 ; P. 117, 19. Ōslāc se mǣra
eorl, 975; P. 122, 6. Ōslāc eorl and eal here þe on þīs (his, f. v. l.) ealdordōme wunað, Ll. Th. i. 278, 5.] :--
Se cyng and Þūrkyl eorl (cf. Cnut cyng eall Englalandes rīce tōdǣlde on feōwer; him seolfan West-Sexan,
and Þūrkylle Eāst-Englan . . . , 1017; P. 154, 4), Chr. 1020; P. 154, 24. Ðā cōm Godwine eorl and Swegen
eorl and Harold eorl . . . Þā wælisce men forwrēgdon ðā eorlas, 1048 ; P. 174, 3, 9. Æt cynges spǣce lecge
man .vi. healfmearc wedd ; æt eorles and bisceopes .xii. ōran wedd, Ll. Th. i. 296, 26. Eorles heregeata,
414, 4. Ærcebisceopes and eorles (æðelinges, v. l.) wærgild bið .xv. M. þrimsa, 186, 19. Gif þegen geþeāh
 hē wearð tō eorle, 192, 7. Beō hē scyldig wið þone þe hit āge, swā wið cyningc .cxx. sciłł., swā wið
eorl .lx. sciłł., 384, 18. Man sette Oddan tō eorle ofer Defenascīre and ofer Sumersǣton and ofer Dorsēton
and ofer Wealas, Chr. 1048; P. 177, 2. v. eorl-dōm. IV. a hero, &c. v. eorl-lic.

CH

MED

Any noble ranking below emperor, king, prince, or duke.

?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   3989:  Tatt enngell nohht ne comm Till kingess ne till eorless.  a1225(?
OE) Vsp.A.Hom.(Vsp A.22)   231:  Se hlaford into þar halle come..mid ærlen and aldren, mid
cnihten, mid þeinen.  a1225(?c1175) PMor.(Trin-C B.14.52)   324:  We mihten habben more an
heuene þa[n] 3ierles [vrr. eorles, erles] and kinges.  (c1300) Havelok (LdMisc 108)   273:  Erl ne
barun, knict ne sweyn.  (1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   71:  Þe kyng, þe erl, þe prince, þe
emperour.  (a1393) Gower CA (Frf 3)   1.3376:  An Erles dowhter now I am.  a1400 Amis (Eg
2862)   65:  A duk wonyd in that lond..Frely he let [sende his sonde] After erles, barouns, fre &
bond.  c1400(a1376) PPl.A(1) (Trin-C R.3.14)   9.80:  Þe Erl Auerous..or his eires.  a1425 Siege
Troy(1) (LinI 150)   842:  The king of Grece..sente..To duyk, Eorl, baroun, and kny3t.  ?a1425
Mandev.(2) (Eg 1982)   114/20:  Dukes, erles, markysez and amyrals.  a1450(a1400) Athelston
(Cai 175/96)   61:  He þat was Eerl off Stane..gat vpon þe Countas Twoo knauechyldren
dere.  a1450(c1410) Lovel. Grail (Corp-C 80)   13.501:  He Clepeth forth lord, dwk, Erl, and
bachelere.  a1450-a1500(1436) Libel EP (Warner)   957:  Kynges and yerles of many a
contre.  c1475(?c1400) Wycl.Apol.(Dub 245)   7:  A duke, or an 3erle, stonding ny a 3erþli
king.  a1500 Degrev.(Cmb Ff.1.6)   1897:  Þe 3orle [Thrn: Erle] dyede þat same 3er, And þe
Contasse cler.  

OED
Eorl

4earnest
r

churl













jarl

alderman


ume

        


  

count

count



yclifrevisa

axton
olinshed
.
arter.
unter           













 
 
      




county





.
louc.arbourii.
.
arkworthriothesley

hakes.ii.lacks
tonei.cott



 
      


axton




tu
bbs

 
gewǣde
BT
ge-wǣde. Add: I. what is worn by a person. (1) in a collective sense, clothing, raiment, clothes :--
Gewoedo his huīt swīðe gesceān uestitus eius albas refulgens, Lk. L. 9, 29. Of gewēdo huæt gēmende aro
gē de uestimento quid sollicti estis?, Mt. L. 6, 28. Giwēde uestimenta, Lk. R. 23, 34. (2) a garment :-- te
fasne gewoede his (fæse giwēdum his, R.) gehrinon ut fimbriam uestimenti eius tangerent, Mk. L. 6, 56.
On gewedo ald in uestimentum uetus, Lk. L. 5, 36. Giwedu his hwītu gescionum, Lk. R. 9, 29. Wē lǣrað
 man geswīce higeleāsra gewǣda, Ll. Th. ii. 248, 15. Hī gegearwadon hine mid gewoedum (-wēdum,
R.) his, Mk. L. 15, 20: Lk. L. 7, 25. Gewōedo uestimenta, 23, 34. (2 a) the garment of a soldier, cf. gūþ-
gewǣde :-- Uil mec (a coat of mail) hātan mith hęliðum hyhtlic giuǣde, Txts. 151, 12. Dǣldon þā
cwelleras þǣra martyra wǣpna and gewǣda ... heora gehwilc hæfde þæs mannes gewǣda þe hē ācwealde,
Hml. S. 28, 83-86. (2 b) used of grave-clothes :-- Þā gewǣda þe heō bewunden wæs mid (cf. ealle þā
scȳtan (linteamina) þe se līchama mid bewunden wæs, Bd. 4, 19; Sch. 449, 8), Hml. S. 20, 94. (2 c)
figurative :-- Ðās gewǣdu āwrāt se apostol ... 'Ymbscrȳdað eōw mid mildheortnysse ... and mid geðylde,'
Hml. Th. i. 60 b, 12. II. the sails of a ship. v. ge-wǣdian; III: wǣde, II :-- Of þām scipe wǣron þā næglas
forlorene and þā gewǣdu wǣron ūt on þā ȳþa āworpene ex navi clavi perditi, vela in undis projecta, Gr.
D. 248, 24. v. breōst-, cyne-, eorl-, fōt-, gūþ-, heāfod-, hrægel-, wægn-, winter-gewǣde.

BTs
ge-wǣde. Add: I. what is worn by a person. (1) in a collective sense, clothing, raiment, clothes :--
Gewoedo his huīt swīðe gesceān uestitus eius albas refulgens, Lk. L. 9, 29. Of gewēdo huæt gēmende aro
gē de uestimento quid sollicti estis?, Mt. L. 6, 28. Giwēde uestimenta, Lk. R. 23, 34. (2) a garment :-- te
fasne gewoede his (fæse giwēdum his, R.) gehrinon ut fimbriam uestimenti eius tangerent, Mk. L. 6, 56.
On gewedo ald in uestimentum uetus, Lk. L. 5, 36. Giwedu his hwītu gescionum, Lk. R. 9, 29. Wē lǣrað
 man geswīce higeleāsra gewǣda, Ll. Th. ii. 248, 15. Hī gegearwadon hine mid gewoedum (-wēdum,
R.) his, Mk. L. 15, 20: Lk. L. 7, 25. Gewōedo uestimenta, 23, 34. (2 a) the garment of a soldier, cf. gūþ-
gewǣde :-- Uil mec (a coat of mail) hātan mith hęliðum hyhtlic giuǣde, Txts. 151, 12. Dǣldon þā
cwelleras þǣra martyra wǣpna and gewǣda ... heora gehwilc hæfde þæs mannes gewǣda þe hē ācwealde,
Hml. S. 28, 83-86. (2 b) used of grave-clothes :-- Þā gewǣda þe heō bewunden wæs mid (cf. ealle þā
scȳtan (linteamina) þe se līchama mid bewunden wæs, Bd. 4, 19; Sch. 449, 8), Hml. S. 20, 94. (2 c)
figurative :-- Ðās gewǣdu āwrāt se apostol ... 'Ymbscrȳdað eōw mid mildheortnysse ... and mid geðylde,'
Hml. Th. i. 60 b, 12. II. the sails of a ship. v. ge-wǣdian; III: wǣde, II :-- Of þām scipe wǣron þā næglas
forlorene and þā gewǣdu wǣron ūt on þā ȳþa āworpene ex navi clavi perditi, vela in undis projecta, Gr.
D. 248, 24. v. breōst-, cyne-, eorl-, fōt-, gūþ-, heāfod-, hrægel-, wægn-, winter-gewǣde.

CH

MED

OED
iweed

lfric
ay.


 
  

frætwe
B&T

frætwe, frætewe, frætuwe, frætwa, frætewa; gen. frætwa; pl. f. Ornaments, adornments, decorations,
treasures; ornāmenta, ornātus, res pretiōsæ :-- Holtes frætwe the decorations of the wood, Exon. 57 a; Th.
202, 22; Ph. 73. Ða wæstmas, foldan frætwe the fruits, the treasures of the earth, 59 b; Th. 215, 22; Ph.
257. Wangas grēne, foldan frætuwe green fields, the ornaments of the earth. Menol. Fox 411; Menol. 207.
Ic ðara frætwa þanc secge I say thanks for these ornaments, Beo. Th. 5580; B. 2794. Frætwa hyrde the
guardian of the treasures, 6258; B. 3133. Māþma fela frætwa many treasures, ornaments, 74; B. 37. Ðām
frætwum to these precious things, 4332; B. 2163. He ðām frætwum fēng he received the ornaments, 5970;
B. 2989. On frætewum in his garnishments, viz. armour, 1928; B. 962. Secgas bǣron beorhte frætwe the
warriors bare bright arms, 434, note; B. 214. He frætwe geheōld, bill and byrnan he held the armour, the
falchion and coat of mail, 5233; B. 2620. Frætwe and fætgold ornaments and plated gold, 3846, note; B.
1921. Hafa wunden gold, feoh and frætwa have the twisted gold, the wealth and ornaments, Cd. 98; Th.
128, 21; Gen. 2130: 136; Th. 171, 17; Gen. 2829: Exon. 51 b; Th. 179, 3; Gū. 1256: Beo. Th. 1797; B.
896. Cyricean frætewa ornāmenta ecclēsicæ, Bd. 1, 29; S. 498, 10, note. Frætwum gefyrðred furthered by
the treasures, Beo. Th. 5561; B. 2784: 4114; B. 2054. [O. Sax. fratahi, f? ornaments.] DER. gold-frætwe.

BTs
frætwe. Add :-- Nelle wē  þǣr mon ǣnig þing inne healde, būtan þā þe tō þǣre cyrcean frætwum
belympað,  is, hālige bēc and hūselfata and mæssereāf, Ll. Th. ii. 406, 33.

CH
frætwa, frætwe fp. treasures, ornaments, trappings, armour : m. adorner, CB556.[+tāwe]

MED

OED
survived under FRET

fret


fyrdhrægl

B&T
fyrd-hrægl, es; n. [hrægel, hrægl a garment] A war-garb; bellĭca vestis, lōrĭca :-- Helm oft gescær, fǣges
fyrdhrægl it often slashed the helmet, the war-garb of the fated, Beo. Th. 3058; B. 1527.

B&Ts

CH
Fyrdhrægl n. corslet, B1527.

MED

OED

FYRD
B&T
FYRD, fyrdung, e; f. I. an army, the military array of the whole country; exercĭtus, expĕdītio. To take part
in the fyrd was the general duty of every freeman, even of the mere churl, but as forming one branch of the
trinoda necessitas it belonged especially to owners of land. 'Every owner of land was obliged to the fyrd
or expeditio; the owner of bookland as liable to the trinoda necessitas alone; the occupier of folkland as
subject to that as well as to many other obligations from which bookland was exempted.' Stubbs' Const.
Hist. i. 190, q. v. By the simple appellation of fyrd the land-force was to be understood. The naval
armament was denominated the scip-fyrd. v. folc-land I [c] :-- Be ðon ðe gesīþcund man fyrde forsitte. Gif
gesīþcund mon, landāgende, forsitte fyrde, geselle cxx scillinga and þolie his landes; unlandāgende lx
scillinga; cierlisc xxx scillinga; to fyrd-wīte [MS. fierd-wīte] in case a gesithcund man neglects the fyrd.
If a gesithcund man owning land, neglect the fyrd, let him pay 120 shillings and forfeit his land; one not
owning land, 60 shillings; a churlish man, 30 shillings; as a fine for neglecting the fyrd, L. In. 51; Th. i.
134, 7-10. II. an army; agmen, exercĭtus :-- Fyrd sceal wið fyrde sacan army shall strive against army,
Menol. Fox 565; Gn. C. 52 : Cd. 146; Th. 183, 8; Exod. 88. On Faraones fyrde in Pharaoh's army, Exon.
122 a; Th. 468, 3; Phar. 2. Claudius, se cāsere, fyrde gelǣdde on Breotone Claudius, the emperor, led an
army into Britain, Bd. 1, 3; S. 475, 11 : Cd. 145; Th. 181, 17; Exod. 62. Gesomnade he his fyrd wið West-
Seaxum he assembled his army against the West Saxons, Bd. 2, 9; S. 512, 2 : Cd. 149; Th. 187, 24; Exod.
156. Fōr fyrda mǣst the greatest of armies marched, Elen. Kmbl. 69; El. 35. Hī heora fyrd gesomnedon
they assembled their armies, Bd. 3. 14; S. 539, 36. III. an expedition; expĕdītio :-- Ðæt ic of ðisse fyrde
feran wille that I will flee out of this expedition, Byrht. Th. 138, 16; By. 221. Ðeāh ðū mid us ne fare on
fyrd though thou go not with us in the expedition, Ps. Th. 43, 11. Onginnaþ ymb ða fyrde þencean they
begin to think about the expedition, Cd. 21; Th. 26, 18; Gen. 408 : 32; Th. 43, 11; Gen. 689 : 92; Th. 118,
7; Gen. 1961. IV. a camp; castrum :-- Fyrd castrum, Ælfc. Gl. 7; Som. 56, 76; Wrt. Voc. 18, 28. [Laym.
ferde, uerde, f. an army : Orm. ferd an army : Scot. ferde an army, host : O. Sax. fard, f. an expedition :
Frs. feard : O. Frs. ferd, f. an expedition : Ger. fahrt, fart, f. ĭter : M. H. Ger. vart, f : O. H. Ger. fart, f. ĭter
: Dan. fart, færd, m. f. an expedition : Swed. fart, m. a passage : Icel. ferð, f. travel.]

B&Ts
fyrd, fyrd-. v. fird, fird-: fyrderung. Dele, and see fyrþrung: fyrdinga. Dele: fyrdrian. v. firdian: fyrd-
tiber. v. fird-tiber: -fȳre (-i, -o). v. þweorh-furh: -fȳrede. v. twi-, þri-fȳrede; fȳrian.

CH
fieri- T. also fyrd-.

MED

f rd(e (n.(2)) Also verd, fierd, fyrd, furd, furth, færd, færð, værde, varde. Pl. ferden, -es,
verden, -es. [OE ferd, fierd, fyrd.]

1.

(a) A national army; (b) an invading army; (c) a private or feudal army; (d) a naval host.

(a)  a1121 Peterb.Chron.(LdMisc 636)   an.1101:  Se cyng mid ealre his fyrde him togeanes
com.  ?a1150 Chron.Tbr.B.1 (Tbr B.1)   an.1066:  Þa com Harold Engla chinge ofer þere brigge,
& hys furde forð mid hine.  ?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   14816:  Swa þatt te king wiþþ all hiss ferd
Wass drunncnedd unnderr flodess.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   19073:  Þe king wes
iuaren ut of þere uærde.  c1225(?c1200) St.Juliana (Bod 34)   55/587:  Al pharaones ferde
fordrencte.  c1300 SLeg.(LdMisc 108)   449/3:  A noble kny3ht is fadur was and Maister of þe
fierde.  c1300 Lay. Brut (Otho C.13)   19101:  Cador þe kene sal bere þis kinges marke..bivore
þeos ilke ferde.  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   438:  Hor ferde [B: ost] wax vaste
aboute & wide.  c1380 Firumb.(1) (Ashm 33)   1625:  Þe furthe ascapede away And prykede
faste to þe furd.  ?a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.(1) (LdMisc 656)   479:  Pharao & his ferde wer in
þe floode drouned.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   4166:  So mony yong men..To fare
in a furde our fos to distroy.  

(b)  ?a1160 Peterb.Chron.(LdMisc 636)   an.1138:  On þis gær com Dauid king of Scotlande
mid ormete færd to þis land, wolde winnan þis land.  c1225 Wor.Bod.Gloss.(Hat 113)   22:  [OE]
here, [ME] ferd.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   1310:  Heora færð [Otho: fare] wes on
sæle.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   12216:  Þa comen þa uerden al abeoten
Rome.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   23358:  Faren ich wulle to France mid muchele
mire ferde.  c1230(?a1200) *Ancr.(Corp-C 402)   18b:  He is as þe burh wið ute wal þet ferde
[Nero: uerd] mei in ouer al.  c1300 SLeg.Edm.King (LdMisc 108)   10:  Into enguelond huy
comen with gret fierd [Hrl: furde].  (c1300) Havelok (LdMisc 108)   2384:  Robert, þat was of al
þe ferd Mayster, was girt wit a swerd.  c1330(?a1300) Arth.& M.(Auch)   8341:  A ferd of xxx
þousinde He smot on al.  c1380 Firumb.(1) (Ashm 33)   85:  He ne wolde..out of þat felde gone
Er Charlis..wer take..& discoumfit were al his ferde.  c1400(?a1300) *KAlex.(LdMisc 622)  
5563:  Neuer, in al this myddelerde, Nas so myche folk in on ferde.  a1425 SLeg.Magd.(2)
(Trin-C R.3.25)   234:  Þer schal come a stronge verd þat schal þe lute spare.  

(c)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   4047:  Feowere here weren riche þe haueden ferden
muchele.  c1275(?a1216) Owl & N.(Clg A.9)   1790:  Mid þisse worde forþ hi ferden Al bute
here and bute uerde.  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   7920:  A uerde [vr. uarde; B:
ferde, oste] þer was binorþe þat robbede al so uaste.  

(d)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   30641:  He warnede æuerre Ædwine king..of þare
uerde & of þan scipen.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   4094:  Out of Trasy þere turnet
triet Vlexes the kyng, With fyfty in a furthe, all of fuerse vesell.  

2.

(a) A division of an army, a band, a troop; (b) a Roman legion.

(a)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   5877:  And maken we of ure uæren fihtie ferden [Otho:
fifti ferdes].  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   19123:  Bemen heo bleowen, bonneden
uærden.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   27255:  Þe eorl of Chæstre..Þa ueorðe uerde heold
mid him.  c1330 Otuel (Auch)   839:  Þei sien of garsies men a feerd, Boþe wiþ spere & wiþ
swerd.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   7217:  Þus ordant were all men..yche furde
folowand on other.  

(b)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   6021:  Heo gunnen senden..feower ferrædene þa we

clipieð ferden [Otho: ferdene], þe weoren on þan ilke dæ3en legiuns ihaten.  

3.

A military expedition, a battle.

a1121 Peterb.Chron.(LdMisc 636)   an.1066:  Ða wæs Leofric abbot of Bush æt þet ilca feord &
sæclode þær & com ham.  c1275(?a1216) Owl & N.(Clg A.9)   1156:  Þu bodes huses brune,
oþer ferde of manne, oþer þoues rune.  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   4406:  Kay..to
deþe was in þulke verde [B: feeld] ywounded al so.  

4.

(a) A company of people, host, band, multitude; people, nation; the devles ~, the Devil's host; the
englene ~, hevene ~, the host of the angels, the heavenly host; (b) in (on) ferde, in company,
together.

(a)  c1175(?OE) HRood (Bod 343)   4/17:  Þa wearð he swiðe bliðe on his mode & mid lude
stefne to ðare ferde clypian ongan.  c1175(?OE) HRood (Bod 343)   20/9:  Ða wænde dauid to
ðam scræfe ant all ðæt ferd ðe mid him wæs.  ?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   14850:  Þe defless
ferd..tacnedd wass Þurrh Faraoness genge.  a1225(?a1200) Trin.Hom.(Trin-C B.14.52)  
115:  Þo folgede ure helende michel feord of englen and of holie soules.  c1275(?a1200) Lay.
Brut (Clg A.9)   4430:  Þe king him 3ette..feoh & færde.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)  
15456:  Let hit cuðen an hi3ing 3eond muchele mire ferde [Otho: ouer al þan folke].  c1225(?
c1200) SWard (Bod 34)   18/163:  Ich iseo..hu þe unwhiht wið his ferd ase liun iburst 3eað
abuten ure hus.  c1230(?a1200) *Ancr.(Corp-C 402)   63a:  Þe hali mon..seh bi west..se muche
ferd [Recl.: so many ferdes] of deoflen.  a1250 Ancr.(Nero A.14)   92:  Al þe englene uerd
[Corp-C: weoret; Cleo: rute].  c1350(a1333) Shoreham Poems (Add 17376)   119/138:  Þer
come singinde þerfore Of angeles manye verden.  a1375 WPal.(KC 13)   5326:  Þer com..of
kinges & oþer grete þe fairest ferde of folk.  a1425 Assump.Virg.(1) (Add 10036)   116:  He
schal sende after þee Of heuene ferde moche plente.  c1440(a1400) Awntyrs Arth.(Thrn)  
186:  Þere folowes me a ferde of fendis fulle felle.  c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)  
5577:  And ferly ferd of his folke was in þe fild strangild.  c1450(?a1400) Parl.3 Ages (Add
31042)   480:  Men of mekyll myghte, And othere fele of that ferde, folke of the beste.  

(b)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   5330:  Heo habbeð swa much folc swa nes næuer eær
on ferde [Otho: ivere].  ?a1400(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.2 (Petyt 511)   p.163:  With þe wille
I go als felawes in ferd.  ?a1400(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.2 (Petyt 511)   p.202:  Knyghtes
gode & wight, sergeanz alle in ferd, þise salle alle be dight.  

OED
fard£
£
fare





. runne



ay.





.
louc.







owell


hrægel

B&T
hrægel, hrægl, es; n. A garment, dress, robe, rail [in night-rail] clothing :-- Gerǣwen hrægel
segmentata vestis: þicce gewefen hrægel pavidensis: þenne gewefen hrægel levidensis: purpuren
hrægel clavus vel purpura: feala hiwes hrægel polymita: wōgum bewerod hrægel ralla vel
rasilis: geedniwod eald hrægel interpola vestis: geclūtad hrægel panucla: gediht hrægel
acupicta: þrȳlen hrægel trilicis, Ælfc. Gl. 63; Som. 68, 99-109; Wrt. Voc. 40, 10-19. Hrægl and
hringas robe and rings, Beo. Th. 2394; B. 1195. Sæt ðǣr sum þearfa nacod bæd hrægles and
ælmessan a beggar sat there naked asked for a garment and an alms, Blickl. Homl. 213, 33.
Hrægles þearfa ic mē leāfum þecce lacking raiment I cover me with leaves, Cd. 40; Th. 53, 25;
Gen. 866. Ðisses hrægles neōt use this robe, Beo. Th. 2439; B. 1217. Wīf mōton under brūnun
hrægle tō hūsle gān mulieribus licet sub nigro velamine eucharistiam accipere, L. Ecg. C. 37; Th.
ii. 162, 7. Wese hē hrægle gelīc fiat ei sicut vestimentum, Ps. Th. 108, 19. Mid mete and mid
hrægle with food and clothing, Blickl. Homl. 41, 29. Se ðe mid ðon ānum hrægle wæs gegyrwed
who was dressed in that one garment, 169, 1. On medmyclum hrægle gehealdene moderate in
dress, 185, 17. Man hine forbærneþ mid his wǣpnum and hrægle he is burnt with his arms and
clothing, Ors. 1, 1; Swt. 21, 8. Ðæt hrægl ðe hē ǣr ðæm þearfan sealde the cloak that he had
given to the beggar, Blickl. Homl. 215, 18: 223, 8. Ongan his hrægl teran began to rend his robe,
Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 28; Jud. 283. Ða hwītan hrægl ðara engla the white robes of the angels,
Blickl. Homl. 121, 24. Sylle earmum mannum his ealde hrægl let him give his old clothes to the
poor, 53, 13. Hie hæfdon manige glengas deōrwyrþra hrægla they had many ornaments of costly
garments, 99, 19. Beaduscrūda betst hrægla sēlest, Beo. Th. 912; B. 454. Ān cild hreglum
[hræglum, MS. C.] bewunden infantem pannis involutum, Lk. Skt. 2, 12. Mid godwebbenum
hræglum with purple raiment, Blickl. Homl. 95, 20. @bt_b0556 Hrægl spolia, Ps. Spl. 67, 13.
[O. Frs. hreil, reil: O. H. Ger. hregil indumentum, coturnus; pl. trophæa, spolia.] DER. beadu-,
beōd-, brēc-, frum-, fyrd-, hrycg-, mere-, set-, setl-, wīte-hrægel.

B&Ts
hrægl. Add: I. a garment, vestment:--Þynwefen hrægl levidensis (vestis), Wrt. Voc. ii. 54, 17. Hrægl
peplum, An. Ox. 18 b, 74. Ðæt hrægl superhumerale, Past. 83, 22. Sceolde beōn āwriten siō racu ðæs
dōmes on ðǣm hrægle ðe mon hǣt rationale . . . On ðǣm selfan hrægle ðe hē on his breōstum wæg . . .
Swīðe ryhte ðæt hrægl is gehāten ðæt se sācerd beran sceolde ðæs dōmes racu, 77, 8-23. Hrecgli, hraecli
amiculo, Txts. 41, 155. Preōst hine clǣnsie in his hālgum hrægle (or under II a ? v. mæsse-hrægel)
ætforan wiōfode, Ll. Th. i. 40, 15. Gearwende hine mið hrægle (clamyde), Mt. L. 27, 27. Mið fellereōde
hrægle purpura, Mk. L. 15, 17. Cyrtel ł hrægl ðīn and hrægl ł hæcla tunicam tuam et pallium, Mt. L. 5, 40.
 purbple hrægl purpureum uestimentum, Jn. L. 19, 5. Gif mon næbbe būton ānfeald hrægl hine mid tō
wreōnne oþþe tō werianne, Ll. Th. i. 52, 24. Hī scīnaþ on manegra cynna hræglum (cf. wǣdum, Met. 25,
4) purpura claros nitente, Bt. 37, 1; F. 186, 3. 'Bring mē þā hrægl (vestimenta)' . . . þā hī þās hrægl
gesāwon . . . hī onfēngon heora āgenu hrægl, Gr. D. 202, 23-203, 2. Hrægla, Mt. L. 26, 67: 27, 35. Woedo
ł hræglo ł clāþas, Mk. L. 14, 63. II. with collective force, dress, garments, clothes, clothing, raiment:--Siō
mennisce wǣdl wilnað . . . ǣgðer ge hrægles ge metes ge drynces, Bt. 26, 2; S. 60, 18. Hī hine hrægles
bǣdon (vestimenta petebant) . . . Se þegn  hrægl (uestimenta) brōhte tō þām lāreōwe . . . hē cwæð:
'Cumað, nimað þis hrægl and scrȳdað eōw mid,' Gr. D. 202, 20-28. Horses hȳde hī habbað him tō hrægle
gedōn pelliculas equorum ad uestimentum habentes, Nar. 38, 2. Mid swelce hrægle (veste) hē in eōde, mid
swelce gange hē ūt, Ll. Th. i. 46, 3. II a. clothes that a person is wearing, (a person's) dress:--Gif hwā
nunnan . . . on hire hrægl gefō, Ll. Th. 72, 9. III. cloth, material of which clothing for persons or
coverings for things are made:--In huītum hrægle (or under I ?) and on asca in cilicio et cinere, Lk. L. R.
10, 13. Sȳ on wintra seō cuhle of þiccum hrægle, R. Ben. 8, 11. III a. a cloth (e. g. an altar-cloth. v.
wīgbed-hrægel), a sheet, a covering (e. g. of a wall. v. wāg-hrægl):--Is ofer his byrgenne stōwe
treōwgeweorc on gelīcnesse medmycles hūses geworht mid hrægle (hrægele, v. l.) gegearwod (coopertus),
Bd. 4, 3; Sch. 366, 10. Līchoma innbewand mid līnene hrægle corpus inuoluit sindone, Lk. L. 23, 53. In
hrægle (scētan, R., scȳtan, W. S.) clǣnum in sindone mundo, Mt. L. 27. 59. Hiā biuundun hine mið
linninum hræglum (mid līnenum clāðe, W. S.) ligauerunt eum linteis, Jn. L. 19, 40. Wǣfelsum, hræglum
sabanis (in sabanis et sindonibus bajulabantur aegroti, Ald. 49, 18), An. Ox. 3588. Rægelum, 2, 229. v.
bearm-, deād-, hand-, heāfod-, līc-, mæsse-, mēs-, on-, sculdor-, stric-, wāg-, wīf-, wīgbed-hræg(e)l.

CH

MED


rail (n.) Also (early) ræil, ræ3l, hræ3ele, hræ3l & (early SEM, SWM) reil & (early SWM)
re3el, riel & (early SW) hre3l.

[OE: cp. WS hrægel, Merc. hregel.]

A garment; clothing; also, a cloth [quot.: c1150]; ~ hous [OE hrægel-h s], a room for storing
clothes; ~ thein [OE hrægel-þegn], a monastic officer in charge of clothes and vestments, a
robe-keeper; ~ theinestre, a female robe-keeper.

OED
rail 


£.
lfred




ogg

nightrail

alsgr.ashe
orbet
hillips
uddiman


fyrdsceorp
B&T
fyrd-sceorp, es; n. A war-vest; bellĭcus ornātus :-- Hwīlum hongige on wage freōlīc fyrdsceorp sometimes
I hang on the wall a goodly war-vest, Exon. 104 a; Th. 395, 25; Rä. 15, 13.

B&Ts

CH
fyrdsceorp n. armour, RD 15la

MED

OED
freely
free






free



"



sceorp

B&T
sceorp, es; n. Dress, apparel: -- Gemētte Machens his āgenne sunu mid purpurum gegieredne. Hē hiene
ðā for ðæm girelan gebealg . . . and wēnde ðæt hē for his forsewennesse swelc sceorp werede, Ors. 4, 4;
Swt. 164, 33. Somnite āwendan on ōðre wīsan heora sceorp Samnites novum habitum sumentes, 3, 10;
Swt. 138, 30. Of manegum landum māre landriht ārīst tō cyniges gebanne . . . scorp tō friðscipe (apparel
for those on board?), L. R. S. 1; Th. i. 432, 8. v. fyrd-, gūþ-, heoru-, hilde-, hleō-, sige-sceorp ; ge-scirpla,
scirpan.
B&Ts

CH
scearp (a, æ) 'sharp,' pointed, prickly, Led,

MED

OED

EE


ynewulf


yclif
axto
niii.hakes.iii.
iltoniv.
rewithering

.
oggii.ray






hauceriii.
unbar
.
obyii.
.
effereiii.hakes.
i.ible

ind.emple
arl
arlisleheridanv.
alt
rs.
askell
ryce
. .
ascoe
. .
awrence
.
. orster.
uchanii.. .
augham.
uinn


thornbackthorny








i.aulfeildaward


fibre







Z
hawthorn.
lfred
lfric

rmin
yclif
rinklow
.
awsonray
ordsw.




.
runneangl.xii.
unbar
hakes.i.hapmanxiv.
ope



ampoleohnson
helley
.
rving






blackthornboxbuckthornc
amel'schrist'slastonburygoat'shawthornlilymouseorangepurgingsallow
scorpion'swhitethorn




illerayne


iller



oxburgh

. ee





ennie
ewman



andeville
. .
hompson

bedcover






ovenbird

buttthornback

oloch














thornapplethornbush
evins

.
llen

tephens

d.
ife
rittenolland
. eynard

ouldillmore
. .
each

.
owley


ipling

ytevi.erardeiii.


harletoninsworth




. . umming

ilton


. .
reen

. mith

. . isheri..
olunin

ampole

ytevi.
aggeyemith







.
ladstone


aki


keat


.
agney

raxall




. ossetti

ewel



.
addisiii.




ii.

ipling.
dams

yeri.

raxall

ughesi.


. . .
ockiv.

atham


. .
haw

.
ylward
.
errman
almeritman




. .
umming. .
aldwin

. . isheriii..
olunin

helleyi.

searu
B&T
searu, searo, [w]e; f. : [w]es; n. Device, design, contrivance, art. I. in the following glosses it is uncertain
whether the word is used with a good or with a bad meaning :-- Sarwo adventio. Wrt. Voc. ii. 99, 38.
Searo molimen, 54, 29. Searwe molimine, 89, 64. Searwe argumenta, 84, 69. Searwum commentis, 14, 82 :
80, 76. Seorwum, 104, 75. Seara machinas, Hpt. Gl. 510, 21. II. in a bad sense, craft, artifice, wile, deceit,
stratagem, ambush, treachery, plot :-- Searu factio (cf. fācn factiones, 64; bepǣcunga factione, Hpt. Gl.
474, 26), Wrt. Voc. ii. 33, 81. Gleāwnisse and seare (sceare, Wrt. ) astu, Wrt. Voc. ii. 9, 27. Mid searwe
on gewald gedōn per proditionem tradere, Ors. 1, 12 ; Swt. 52, 27. Swīðor beswicen for Alexandres
searewe ðonne for his gefeohte non minus arte Alexandri superata, quam virtute Macedonum, 3, 9 ; Swt.
124, 19. Mid searuwe ācwellan morti tradere, Ps. Th. 108, 16. Ðara feōnda searo beswīcan and
ofercurnan, Blickl. Homl. 201, 29. Searo rēnian to lay a snare, 109, 30: Cd. Th. 162, 9; Gen. 2678. Þurh
ðæs deōfles searo dōm forlǣtan, 39, 27; Gen. 632: Exon. Th. 153, 7; Gū. 822: 227, 6; Ph. 419. Þurh īdel
searu, Ps. Th. 138, 17: Elen. Kmbl. 1438; El. 721. Swilt þurh searwe death by treachery, Andr. Kmbl.
2695; An. 1350. Searwa molimina (magorum), Hpt. Gl. 502, 53. Sarwa mendacia, Wrt. Voc. ii. 132, 41.
Full fācnes and searuwa plenum dolo, Ps. Th. 9, 27 : Met. 9, 27. In searwum in insidiis. Ps. Surt. 9, 29.
Searwum factionibus, Wrt. Voc. ii. 34, 9. Mid sibbe wē cōmon næs mid searwum pacifice venimus nec
quidquam machinamur mali, Gen. 42, 11. Beswicen mid deōfles searwum daemonica fraude seductus,
Bd. 5, 13; S. 632, 26. Mid searewan (his searum, MS. C. ) consiliis, Ors. 3, 7 ; Swt. 112, 18. Searowum
beswicene, Andr. Kmbl. 1489; An. 745. Hiē þurh seara (per insidias) ofslægene wurdon, Ors. 1, 10; Swt.
44, 28. Ðā funde hē swīðe yfel geþeaht and searwa ymb hira līf contra eorum vitam consilium praebuit,
Past. 54, 4; Swt. 423, 15. Gif hwā ofsleā his ðone nēhstan þurh searwa, L. Alf. 13 ; Th. i. 48, 1: Blickl.
Homl. 83, 33. Hwylce searwa se drȳ ārefnde what artifices the sorcerer practiced, 173, 8. Nyston ða
searwe ðe him sǣton bæftan ignorans quod post tergum laterent insidiae, Jos. 8, 14. III. in a good sense,
art, skill, contrivance, (in the adverbial inst. searwum skilfully, ingeniously, with art) :-- Searwum āsǣled,
Cd. Th. 207, 21; Exod. 470. Salem stōd searwum (or IV?) āfæstnod, weallum geweorðod, 218, 17; Dan.
40. Sadol searwum fāh (cf. searu-fāh), Beo. Th. 2080; B. 1038. Earmbeāga fela searwum gesǣled (cf.
searu-sǣled), 5521; B. 2764: Exon. Th. 438, 10; Rä. 57, 5 (cf. searu-bunden): 216, 17; Ph. 269. Būr
ātimbran, searwum āsettan, 411, 27; Rä. 30, 6. IV. that which is contrived with art, a machine, engine,
fabric :-- Stæfliðere oððe searu ballista, machina belli. Wrt. Voc. ii. 10, 62. Searu ballisla, catapulta, vel
machina belli, 125, 9. Middaneardes wyrhta seares mundi factor machinae, Hymn. Surt. 29, 9. Ic seah
searo hweorfan, grindan wið greōte, giellende faran, Exon. Th. 414, 29; ä 33, 3. IV a. armour, equipment,
arms :-- Byrnan, gūðsearo gumena, gāras. . . sǣmanna searo, Beo. Th. 663; B. 329. Beran beorht searo,
Cd. Th. 191, 23; Exod. 219. Licgeþ lonnum fæst . . . swīðe swingeþ and his searo hringeþ, Salm. Kmbl.
534; Sal. 266. Hringīren song in searwum (coats of mail), Beo. Th. 651; B. 323: 5053 ; B. 2530. Secg on
searwum, 503; B. 249: 5392 ; B. 2700. Geseah on searwum (among the arms) sigeeadig bil, 3118; 8.
1557. Searwum gearwe equipped, 3631; B. 1813. [Goth. sarwa; n. pl. GREEK : O. H. Ger. saro ; gi-sarwi,
-sarwa lorica, armatura, arma: Icel. sörvi a necklace; armour., ] v. beadu-, bealu-, fācen-, fǣr-, fyrd-,
gūþ-, hlāford-, inwit-, lāþ-, lyge-, nearu-searu ; siru; and cf. or-þanc.

B&Ts
searu. II. add :-- Sē āwyrgeda gāst þæs preōstes heortan mid his searwes āttre geondsprengde, Guth. 44,
13. Healdað eōw ðæt gē ne onǣlan mīn ierre mid eōwrum searwum ne forte indignatio mea succendatur
propter malitiam studiorum vestrorum, Past. 435, 10. IV. add :-- Man āhēhþ mid searwum mycle sweras
pendere magnas in machinis columnas, Gr. D. 270, 4. Þā sōhtan heora gewinnan him sarwe and worhtan
him hōcas non cessant uncinata hostium tela, Bd. 1, 12; Sch. 34, 27.

CH

OED

MED

gearwe
B&T
gearwe; comp. gearwor; sup. gearwost, gearwast; adv. Entirely, well, very well, enough; pĕnĭtus, prorsus,
bĕne, optĭme, sătis, Cd. 52; Th. 67, 10; Gen. 1098 : 107; Th. 141, 10; Gen. 2342 : Beo. Th. 536; B. 265 :
Exon. 48 a; Th. 164, 28; Gū. 1018 : Bd. 5, 6; S. 618, 30 : Ps. Th. 142, 9. Gearwor, Andr. Kmbl. 1864; An.
934 : Exon. 73 b; Th. 275, 27; Jul. 556 : Beo. Th. 6141; B. 3074 : Elen. Grm. 945. Gearwost, Beo. Th.
1435; B. 715. Gearwast, Elen. Grm. 329. v. geare.
BTs
gearwe yarrow. Add :-- Geruuae, geruę, millefolium, Txts. 76, 623. Gearuuae, 639. Gearewe, Ælfc. Gr. Z.
311, 1. Seō reāde gearuwe, Lch. iii. 24, 2. Wyl on meolcum þā reādan gearwan, ii. 354, 9.

CH
gearwe 1. adv. eomp, gear(w)or; sup.

MED

yarwe (n.) Also yarowe, yar(r)ou, 3arwe, 3arewe, 3arowe, 3arou, 3orou(gh, iarue, (early)
yarewe, gearwe & (in place names) yarw-, yeru-, jerne-.

[OE gearwe, gearewe, gearuwe, gerue yarrow.]

(a) The plant yarrow (Achillea millefolium); -- freq. used in medicinal recipes;

(b) ~ mele, prob. error for pimpernel(e n. or perh. wurmele n.;

(c) in place name [see Smith PNElem. 1.198].

OED
gear, n.

yare
gar


furniture



ower
.
aston
kelton
oxe
anbr.ib.i.
rs.
elanyii..
oungordsw.iii.
olland.
arrett













ay.
arbourxviii.
axton

arlylev.
keat



overdale
rydeni.

ickens
eats



itzherb.

olland

ohnson.
ashington
lare.
axter






ulleriii.
ogers
leveland.
theregeiv.arrow
ryden
enn
.
.wift

ohnson





arbourxvii.
haucer

cott
.
odgsoncoresby
reenwell


ir . .
athew



obbeswiftarmer
otgr.



.
oung
.
artin
. .
allacere



reenwell



raseribbons




.
urke
.
urray




itzherb..
efferson.
icholson

.
umei.

owell



ii.
night





night



. .
ounger





gearing

.
uchanan
. .
obinson





.
ayoingsle
yhornbury
reen
. . raddon.
ooper






top
. .
idlake
.
turmey
.
ayii.top
. .
ommett




turmyi.
arryat






yclif
i.
ilton
.
eithivingstone



free
tewart
indesay
uchananume
.
onsonii.utherford
i.
empill
rbuthnotiii.
amsayi.urns
ayneii.
obinson
. . wan


.
lde
outhey



axtonii.
atimerur
nerii.yteiv.
ir .
eydonurchas
ay
arwood
.
aceill


urnerii.penservi
.
. oreiii.

ooson



matterstuff

occlevekelton
.
oogei.ayiii.
owlandsedell
elden
ryden
.
istennysoniii.





. .. .
tapyltoniv..
hitei.cott
rs. . ynn
inton


.
schamorth
reeneodgeletcherhirley
v.ames
cott










isct.
uryillier
. .
eaumont



irduttontott

. .
haw
.
turmey





night


amieson
. ennant
.
tewart


utherford

topoungston




. . .
oung




night





geatwe
B&T
geatwe; gen. a; dat. um; acc. a; pl. f. Arms, trappings, garments, ornaments; armāmenta, vestīmenta
ornāmenta :-- Twegen englas gesceldode and gesperode and mid heora geatwum gegyrede, efne swā hie to
campe fēran woldon two angels with shields and spears and with their equipments, just as if they meant to
go to battle, Blickl. Homl. 221, 28. Freōlīce in geatwum [MS. geotwum] in trappings goodly, Chr. 1066;
Th. 334, 35, col. 1; Edw. 22. Geatwum with ornaments, Exon. 109 a; Th. 417, 26; Rä. 36, 10. Ic
geondseah recedes geatwa I looked over the ornaments of the house, Beo. 6167; B. 3087. DER. eōred-
geatwe, fyrd-, gryre-, gūþ-, here-, hilde-. v. ge-tawe. @bt_b0370

BTs
geatwe. Add :-- Wyrmas mec ni āuēfun, ðā ði goelu godueb geatum fraetuað, Txts. 151, 10.
CH
geatwe fp. arms, equipments, trappings, ornaments: organs, members.

MED

OED
heriot
here

.
lfred




hereyeld




ii.





itzherb.otgr.
romei.
uller
lackstone
earson

tubbs

aine
.
rown



ullerv.
owelli.
.
osman


acketii.
rowneii.



ii.
ale
lackstone





"
otgr.

gūþ-getawa
B&T
gūþ-getawa; pl. f. War-equipments, Beo. Th. 5265; B. 2636.

B&Ts
gūþ-gewǣd. l. -gewǣde: gūp-mōd; adj. -Substitute: gūp-mōd, es; n. A martial mind. v. grimman : gūp-
præc. l. -þracu.

CH
gūðgewǽde† n. war-dress, armour.

MED

OED

GŪÞ
B&T
GŪÞ, e; f. [a poetical word] War, battle, fight; bellum :-- Gūþ nimeþ freān eōwerne war shall take away
your lord, Beo. Th. 5066; B. 2536: 4960; B. 2483: 3320; B. 1658: 2251; B. 1123. Sumne sceal gūþ
abreōtan war shall crush one, Exon. 87a; Th. 328, 12; Vy. 16: 88a; Th. 331, 15; Vy. 68. Bīdan Grendles
gūþe to await Grendel's attack, Beo. Th. 970; B. 483. Gūþe gefȳsed ready for battle, 1265; B. 630: Byrht.
Th. 137, 27; By. 192: 140, 30; By. 296: Andr. Kmbl. 467; An. 234. He gūþe rǣs fremman sceolde he had
to perform a war-onslaught, Beo. Th. 5245; B. 2626: 4712; B. 2356. Grimre gūþe in fierce fight, 1058; B.
527. Ðonne hie to gūþe gārwudu rǣrdon when to battle they reared the spearshaft, Cd. 160; Th. 198, 19;
Exod. 325: Beo. Th. 880; B. 438: 2948; B. 1472: Byrht. Th. 132, 8; By. 13: 134, 34; By. 94: Elen. Kmbl.
45; El. 23. Ðe ðē æsca tīr æt gūþe forgeaf who gave thee martial glory in fight, Cd. 97; Th. 127, 11; Gen.
2109: Judth. 11; Thw. 23, 15; Jud. 123: Exon. 17b; Th. 42, 17; Cri. 674: Beo. Th. 3074; B. 1535; Byrht.
Th. 140, 9; By. 285; Chr. 937; Erl. 114, 10; Ædelst. 44: Andr. Kmbl. 2661; An. 1332. Æt ðære gūþe
Gārulf gecrang at the battle fell Garulf, Fins. Th. 62; Fin. 31. Ðǣr ðū gūþe findest there wilt thou find
conflict, Andr. Kmbl. 2698; An. 1351. Ǣr ðū gūþe fremme before thou do battle, 2708; An. 1356: Exon.
105b; Th. 402, 5; Rä. 21, 25. Se ða gūþe genæc he had come safe out of the battle, Cd. 94; Th. 121, 33;
Gen. 2019. Ðe ða gūþe forbeāh who turned aside from the battle, Byrht. Th. 141, 21; By. 315. Gūþe
spōwan to thrive in battle, Cd. 97; Th. 127, 23; Gen. 2115: Exon. 71b; Th. 266, 4; Jul. 393: Salm. Kmbl.
249; Sal. 124. Ic genēþde fela gūþa I dared many a conflict, Beo. Th. 5017; B. 2512: 5080; B. 2543.
Guma gūþum cūþ a man distinguished in battles, 4362; B. 2178: 3920; B. 1958. [Icel. gunnr, gūðr war
(only used in poetry): O. H. Ger. gund, Grff. iv. 219.] See Grmm. D. M. 393.

BTs
brak

CH

MED

OED


ay.

GŪÞ

reaf

reāf, es; n. I. spoil, booty :-- Reāf exuviae, spolia, Wrt. Voc. ii. 146, 33 : exuvias, 31, 56 : 93, 1. Weorðlīc
reāf spolia, Ps. Th. 67, 12. Se ðe beorna reāf manige (spolia multa) mēteþ, 118, 162. Seō gȳtsung hyre
reāf (spolia) on ðære wynstran sīdan scylt, Gl. Prud. 56 a. Hȳ ðȳ reāfe rǣdan mōtan, Exon. Th. 110, 5; Gū.
103. II. raiment, a garment, robe, vestment :-- Reāf vestis vel vestimentum vel indumentum, Wrt. Voc. i.
81, 40 : cultus, 39, 70. Heō æthrān his reāfes (vestimenti) fnæd. Heō cwæþ sōðlīce : Ic beō hāl gyf ic hys
reāfes æthrīne, Mt. Kmbl. 9, 20-21. Tō hwī sint gē ymbhȳdige be reāfe ? 6, 28. Twegen weras on hwītum
reāfe in veste fulgenti, Lk. Skt. 24, 4. Ne scrīde nān wīf hig mid wǣpmannes reāfe ne wǣpman mid
wīfmannes reāfe, Deut. 22, 5. Hē scrȳdde hine mid līnenum reāfe cum stola byssina, Gen. 41, 42. Hlāf tō
etenne and reāf tō werigenne, 28, 20. Ðæt hālie reāf ðæt Aaron wereþ, Ex. 29, 29. Johannes hæfde reāf of
olfenda hǣrum, Mt. Kmbl. 3, 4. His reāf (vestimenta) wǣron swā hwīte swā snāw, 17, 2. Hī sǣton on
blacum reāfum weān on wēnum, Cd. Th. 191, 10; Exod. 212. Ðā dyde heō of hire wydewan reāf depositis
viduitatis vestibus, Gen. 38, 14. [Laym. reaf, ræf a robe : O. Sax. nōd-rōf rapine : O. Frs. rāf robbery,
booty; also a pledge : O. Du. roof : O. H. Ger. roub spolia, praeda : Icel. val-rauf spoils taken from the
slain.] v. bed-, būr-, deāþ-, gūþ-, heaðo-, here-, lenden-, sīd-, wæl-reāf.

sceorp

sceorp, es; n. Dress, apparel: -- Gemētte Machens his āgenne sunu mid purpurum gegieredne. Hē hiene
ðā for ðæm girelan gebealg . . . and wēnde ðæt hē for his forsewennesse swelc sceorp werede, Ors. 4, 4;
Swt. 164, 33. Somnite āwendan on ōðre wīsan heora sceorp Samnites novum habitum sumentes, 3, 10;
Swt. 138, 30. Of manegum landum māre landriht ārīst tō cyniges gebanne . . . scorp tō friðscipe (apparel
for those on board?), L. R. S. 1; Th. i. 432, 8. v. fyrd-, gūþ-, heoru-, hilde-, hleō-, sige-sceorp ; ge-scirpla,
scirpan.

scrūd

scrūd, es ; n. I. dress, clothing, attire :-- Hræglung vestitus, scruud habitus, Wrt. Voc. i. 39, 69. Hwæt
begytst ðū of ðīnum cræfte ? Bigleofan and scrūd (vestitum) and feoh, Coll. Monast. Th. 23, 5. Hē sylþ
him andlyfene and scrūd dat ei victum et vestitum, Deut. 10, 18 : L. Pen. 15; Th. ii. 282, 26. II. an article
of dress, a garment :-- Scrūd vestis, clamis. Wrt. Voc. i. 25, 50. Cildes scrūd praetexta, 25, 56. Slēfleās
scrūd colobium, slēfleās ancra scrūd levitonarium, 40, 20, 21. @bt_b0843 Scrūde melote, veste, Hpt. Gl.
492, 52. Hē sealde hira ǣlcum twā scrūd (stolas), and hē sealde Beniamine fīf scrūd, Gen 45, 22. [Laym.
scrud : Orm. shrud: A. R. schrud : Ayenb. ssroud : Piers P. shroud dress, garment : Icel. skrūð shrouds of
a ship, tackle.] v. beadu-, byrdu-, gūþ-, munuc-, nun-, ofer-, wīf-scrūd.

searu

searu, searo, [w]e; f. : [w]es; n. Device, design, contrivance, art. I. in the following glosses it is uncertain
whether the word is used with a good or with a bad meaning :-- Sarwo adventio. Wrt. Voc. ii. 99, 38.
Searo molimen, 54, 29. Searwe molimine, 89, 64. Searwe argumenta, 84, 69. Searwum commentis, 14, 82 :
80, 76. Seorwum, 104, 75. Seara machinas, Hpt. Gl. 510, 21. II. in a bad sense, craft, artifice, wile, deceit,
stratagem, ambush, treachery, plot :-- Searu factio (cf. fācn factiones, 64; bepǣcunga factione, Hpt. Gl.
474, 26), Wrt. Voc. ii. 33, 81. Gleāwnisse and seare (sceare, Wrt. ) astu, Wrt. Voc. ii. 9, 27. Mid searwe
on gewald gedōn per proditionem tradere, Ors. 1, 12 ; Swt. 52, 27. Swīðor beswicen for Alexandres
searewe ðonne for his gefeohte non minus arte Alexandri superata, quam virtute Macedonum, 3, 9 ; Swt.
124, 19. Mid searuwe ācwellan morti tradere, Ps. Th. 108, 16. Ðara feōnda searo beswīcan and
ofercurnan, Blickl. Homl. 201, 29. Searo rēnian to lay a snare, 109, 30: Cd. Th. 162, 9; Gen. 2678. Þurh
ðæs deōfles searo dōm forlǣtan, 39, 27; Gen. 632: Exon. Th. 153, 7; Gū. 822: 227, 6; Ph. 419. Þurh īdel
searu, Ps. Th. 138, 17: Elen. Kmbl. 1438; El. 721. Swilt þurh searwe death by treachery, Andr. Kmbl.
2695; An. 1350. Searwa molimina (magorum), Hpt. Gl. 502, 53. Sarwa mendacia, Wrt. Voc. ii. 132, 41.
Full fācnes and searuwa plenum dolo, Ps. Th. 9, 27 : Met. 9, 27. In searwum in insidiis. Ps. Surt. 9, 29.
Searwum factionibus, Wrt. Voc. ii. 34, 9. Mid sibbe wē cōmon næs mid searwum pacifice venimus nec
quidquam machinamur mali, Gen. 42, 11. Beswicen mid deōfles searwum daemonica fraude seductus,
Bd. 5, 13; S. 632, 26. Mid searewan (his searum, MS. C. ) consiliis, Ors. 3, 7 ; Swt. 112, 18. Searowum
beswicene, Andr. Kmbl. 1489; An. 745. Hiē þurh seara (per insidias) ofslægene wurdon, Ors. 1, 10; Swt.
44, 28. Ðā funde hē swīðe yfel geþeaht and searwa ymb hira līf contra eorum vitam consilium praebuit,
Past. 54, 4; Swt. 423, 15. Gif hwā ofsleā his ðone nēhstan þurh searwa, L. Alf. 13 ; Th. i. 48, 1: Blickl.
Homl. 83, 33. Hwylce searwa se drȳ ārefnde what artifices the sorcerer practiced, 173, 8. Nyston ða
searwe ðe him sǣton bæftan ignorans quod post tergum laterent insidiae, Jos. 8, 14. III. in a good sense,
art, skill, contrivance, (in the adverbial inst. searwum skilfully, ingeniously, with art) :-- Searwum āsǣled,
Cd. Th. 207, 21; Exod. 470. Salem stōd searwum (or IV?) āfæstnod, weallum geweorðod, 218, 17; Dan.
40. Sadol searwum fāh (cf. searu-fāh), Beo. Th. 2080; B. 1038. Earmbeāga fela searwum gesǣled (cf.
searu-sǣled), 5521; B. 2764: Exon. Th. 438, 10; Rä. 57, 5 (cf. searu-bunden): 216, 17; Ph. 269. Būr
ātimbran, searwum āsettan, 411, 27; Rä. 30, 6. IV. that which is contrived with art, a machine, engine,
fabric :-- Stæfliðere oððe searu ballista, machina belli. Wrt. Voc. ii. 10, 62. Searu ballisla, catapulta, vel
machina belli, 125, 9. Middaneardes wyrhta seares mundi factor machinae, Hymn. Surt. 29, 9. Ic seah
searo hweorfan, grindan wið greōte, giellende faran, Exon. Th. 414, 29; ä 33, 3. IV a. armour, equipment,
arms :-- Byrnan, gūðsearo gumena, gāras. . . sǣmanna searo, Beo. Th. 663; B. 329. Beran beorht searo,
Cd. Th. 191, 23; Exod. 219. Licgeþ lonnum fæst . . . swīðe swingeþ and his searo hringeþ, Salm. Kmbl.
534; Sal. 266. Hringīren song in searwum (coats of mail), Beo. Th. 651; B. 323: 5053 ; B. 2530. Secg on
searwum, 503; B. 249: 5392 ; B. 2700. Geseah on searwum (among the arms) sigeeadig bil, 3118; 8.
1557. Searwum gearwe equipped, 3631; B. 1813. [Goth. sarwa; n. pl. GREEK : O. H. Ger. saro ; gi-sarwi,
-sarwa lorica, armatura, arma: Icel. sörvi a necklace; armour., ] v. beadu-, bealu-, fācen-, fǣr-, fyrd-,
gūþ-, hlāford-, inwit-, lāþ-, lyge-, nearu-searu ; siru; and cf. or-þanc.

gewǣde

ge-wǣde. Add: I. what is worn by a person. (1) in a collective sense, clothing, raiment, clothes :--
Gewoedo his huīt swīðe gesceān uestitus eius albas refulgens, Lk. L. 9, 29. Of gewēdo huæt gēmende aro
gē de uestimento quid sollicti estis?, Mt. L. 6, 28. Giwēde uestimenta, Lk. R. 23, 34. (2) a garment :-- te
fasne gewoede his (fæse giwēdum his, R.) gehrinon ut fimbriam uestimenti eius tangerent, Mk. L. 6, 56.
On gewedo ald in uestimentum uetus, Lk. L. 5, 36. Giwedu his hwītu gescionum, Lk. R. 9, 29. Wē lǣrað
 man geswīce higeleāsra gewǣda, Ll. Th. ii. 248, 15. Hī gegearwadon hine mid gewoedum (-wēdum,
R.) his, Mk. L. 15, 20: Lk. L. 7, 25. Gewōedo uestimenta, 23, 34. (2 a) the garment of a soldier, cf. gūþ-
gewǣde :-- Uil mec (a coat of mail) hātan mith hęliðum hyhtlic giuǣde, Txts. 151, 12. Dǣldon þā
cwelleras þǣra martyra wǣpna and gewǣda ... heora gehwilc hæfde þæs mannes gewǣda þe hē ācwealde,
Hml. S. 28, 83-86. (2 b) used of grave-clothes :-- Þā gewǣda þe heō bewunden wæs mid (cf. ealle þā
scȳtan (linteamina) þe se līchama mid bewunden wæs, Bd. 4, 19; Sch. 449, 8), Hml. S. 20, 94. (2 c)
figurative :-- Ðās gewǣdu āwrāt se apostol ... 'Ymbscrȳdað eōw mid mildheortnysse ... and mid geðylde,'
Hml. Th. i. 60 b, 12. II. the sails of a ship. v. ge-wǣdian; III: wǣde, II :-- Of þām scipe wǣron þā næglas
forlorene and þā gewǣdu wǣron ūt on þā ȳþa āworpene ex navi clavi perditi, vela in undis projecta, Gr.
D. 248, 24. v. breōst-, cyne-, eorl-, fōt-, gūþ-, heāfod-, hrægel-, wægn-, winter-gewǣde.

heāðureaf

B&T
heaðu, heaðo war; a word occurring only in compounds. The word is found in proper names in Icelandic,
e.g. Höð the name of a Valkyria, Höðbroddr, Höðr the slayer of Baldr; and in O. H. Ger. e.g. Hadu-praht,
v. Grmm. D. M. 204: Cl. and Vig. Dict. höð. Cf. beadu, gūþ, hilde and their compounds.

reaf

reāf, es; n. I. spoil, booty :-- Reāf exuviae, spolia, Wrt. Voc. ii. 146, 33 : exuvias, 31, 56 : 93, 1. Weorðlīc
reāf spolia, Ps. Th. 67, 12. Se ðe beorna reāf manige (spolia multa) mēteþ, 118, 162. Seō gȳtsung hyre
reāf (spolia) on ðære wynstran sīdan scylt, Gl. Prud. 56 a. Hȳ ðȳ reāfe rǣdan mōtan, Exon. Th. 110, 5; Gū.
103. II. raiment, a garment, robe, vestment :-- Reāf vestis vel vestimentum vel indumentum, Wrt. Voc. i.
81, 40 : cultus, 39, 70. Heō æthrān his reāfes (vestimenti) fnæd. Heō cwæþ sōðlīce : Ic beō hāl gyf ic hys
reāfes æthrīne, Mt. Kmbl. 9, 20-21. Tō hwī sint gē ymbhȳdige be reāfe ? 6, 28. Twegen weras on hwītum
reāfe in veste fulgenti, Lk. Skt. 24, 4. Ne scrīde nān wīf hig mid wǣpmannes reāfe ne wǣpman mid
wīfmannes reāfe, Deut. 22, 5. Hē scrȳdde hine mid līnenum reāfe cum stola byssina, Gen. 41, 42. Hlāf tō
etenne and reāf tō werigenne, 28, 20. Ðæt hālie reāf ðæt Aaron wereþ, Ex. 29, 29. Johannes hæfde reāf of
olfenda hǣrum, Mt. Kmbl. 3, 4. His reāf (vestimenta) wǣron swā hwīte swā snāw, 17, 2. Hī sǣton on
blacum reāfum weān on wēnum, Cd. Th. 191, 10; Exod. 212. Ðā dyde heō of hire wydewan reāf depositis
viduitatis vestibus, Gen. 38, 14. [Laym. reaf, ræf a robe : O. Sax. nōd-rōf rapine : O. Frs. rāf robbery,
booty; also a pledge : O. Du. roof : O. H. Ger. roub spolia, praeda : Icel. val-rauf spoils taken from the
slain.] v. bed-, būr-, deāþ-, gūþ-, heaðo-, here-, lenden-, sīd-, wæl-reāf.

wǣd
wǣd, e; f.: wǣde, es; n. I. referring to the dress of human beings. (1) a weed (as in palmer's, widow's
weeds), an article of dress, a garment :-- Martinus mē bewǣfde mid ðyssere wǣde, Homl. Th. ii. 500, 34.
Ne cume hē būton his oferslipe, ne hē þēnige būton ðære wǣde, L. Edg. C. 46; Th. ii. 254, 11. In wēde
(vestimentum) ald ... from wēde (vestimento), Mt. Kmbl. Lind. 9, 16. Gehrān woede (wēdum, Rush.) his
tetigit uestimentum ejus, Mk. Skt. Lind. 5, 27. Ungigearuad woede gīmungalīcum non vestitum veste
nuptiali, Rtl. 108, 1. Woede hāluoende vestimentum salutare, 103, 22. Hē næfþ ða neōdþearfe āne, ðæt is
wist and wǣda, Bt. 33, 2; Fox 124, 17. Woedo uestimenta, Mk. Skt. Lind. 9, 3. Ic wæs nacod, nolde gē mē
wǣda tīþian, Wulfst. 288, 33. Wǣda leāsne, Cd. Th. 53, 27; Gen. 867: 256, 2; Dan. 634: Met. 25, 32. Ðū
wǣda tylast, Homl. Th. i. 488, 26. Of ungemete wiste and wǣda,

BTs

CH

MED

OED

heresceorp
BT
here-sceorp, es; n. War-dress, Fins. Th. 90; Fin. 45.
BTs

CH
hereseeorp n. war-dress, Fr»f45

MED

OED

here
BT
HERE; gen. heres, heriges, herges; m. An army, a host, multitude, a large predatory band [it is the word
which in the Chronicle is always used of the Danish force in England, while the Egglish troops are always
the fyrd], hence the word is used for devastation and robbery :-- Ne dohte hit nū lange inne nē ūte ac wæs
here and hunger bryne and blōdgyte it is now long since matters were thriving at home or abroad, but
there has been ravaging and famine, burning and bloodshed, Swt. A. S. Rdr. 106, 68. Micel here turba
multa, Mt. Kmbl. Lind. 14, 14. Here legio, Lk. Skt. Lind. 8, 30: exercitus, 23, 11. Þeōfas wē hātaþ ōð vii
men from vii. hlōþ ōð xxxv siððan biþ here up to seven men we call thieves, from seven to thirty-five a
gang, after that it is an army, L. In. 13; Th. i. 110, 14. [Cf. L. In. 15; Th. i. 112, 1, be herige; and L. Alf.
28; Th. i. 52, 2.] Hē gearo wǣre tō ðæs heres þearfe he would be ready to supply the needs of the Danes,
Chr. 874; Erl. 76, 32: 878; Erl. 80, 3. Ðæs heriges hām eft ne com ǣnig tō lāfe of that host came no
remnant back home, Cd. 167; Th. 209, 30; Exod. 507: Elen. Kmbl. 410; El. 205. Herges, 285; El. 143. On
Eāst-Englum wurdon monige men ofslægene from ðam herige in East Anglia many men were slain by the
Danes, Chr. 838; Erl. 66, 15: Andr. Kmbl. 2397; An. 1200. Herge, Cd. 4; Th. 4, 9; Gen. 51: Beo. Th.
2500; B. 1248. Se ðæm here waldeþ who rules that host, Bt. Met. Fox 25, 30; Met. 25, 15. Siō fierd ðone
here gefliēmde the English force put the Danish to flight, Chr. 894; Erl. 90, 26. Swā oft swā ða ōðre
hergas mid ealle herige ūt fōron ðonne fōron hie as often as the other armies marched out in full force
then they marched, Erl. 90, 5. Tuelf hergas duodecim legiones, Mt. Kmbl. Lind. 26, 53. Hergia[s] agmina,
Rtl. 115, 10. Ðȳ læs ǣfre cweðan ōðre þeōda hǣðene herigeas nequando dicant in gentibus, Ps. Th. 78,
10: Andr. Kmbl. 1304; An. 652. Herigea mǣste with the greatest of hosts, 3001; An. 1503. Herega, Cd.
209; Th. 259, 29; Dan. 699. Heriga, Elen. Kmbl. 295; El. 148. Herga, 230; El. 115. Betwuh ðǣm twām
hergum between the two armies, Chr. 894; Erl. 90, 9: Elen. Kmbl. 219; El. 110. Herigum, 811; El. 406.
[Laym. Orm. here: Goth. harjis. O. Sax. heri: O. Frs. hiri, here: Icel. herr: O. H. Ger. hari, heri exercitus,
agmen: Ger. heer.] DER. æsc-, ēgor-, flot-, forþ-, gūþ-, inn-, īsern-, sin-, scip-, þeōd-, ūt-, wæl-here.

BTs
here an army. Add: I. a body of armed men. (l) not referring to England, (a) an army, a host :-- Cempa
miles, here exercitus, Wrt. Voc. i. 72, 69: faccus, exercitus, ii. 146, 70. Fird, here expeditio, 29, 69. Bið se
here eal īdel, ðonne hē on ōðer folc winnan sceal, gif se heretoga dwolað in explorations hostium jrusira
exercitus velociter sequitur, si ab ipso dace itineris erratur, Past. 129, 8. Here wīcode ēgstreāme neāh, El.
65. Handrōfra here, Exod. 247. Dauid miclum his āgenes herges þleah UNCERTAIN cum damno
exercitus, Past. 37, 7 : Bl. H. 193, 2. Ic rīde herges on ende, Ra. 78, 8. Heriges wīsa, Dan. 203. Herges
wīsa, freom folctoga, Exod. 13. Herges rǣswan, 234. Mennen þe þū āhreddest herges cræftum, Gen. 2127.
Tītus cōm mid Rōmāna herige . . . þā leōde flugon þā hiē þone here tōweardne wiston, El. H. 79, 11-13. Se
eorl of Normandige sende tō Francena cynge, and hē cōm mid mycelan here, and se cyng and se eorl mid
ormǣtre fyrde besǣtoa þone castel, Chr. 1090; P. 225, 28. Ūt of þām herige, Jud. 135. Se cyning sende his
here tō missis exercitibus suis, Mt. 22, 7. ¶ in an epithet of the Deity, the Lord of hosts :-- God sylfne,
herga fruman, El. 210 : Cri. 845. (b) a division of an army, army corps, legion, cohort, troop :-- Wæs eft
here hider onsended rursus mittitur legio, Bd. l, 12; Sch. 33, 6. Ðā onsendon hī him micelne here tō
fultume quibus legio destinatur armata, Sch. 32, 7. Hergas wurdon feōwer on fleāme, Gen. 2073. Wēron
gesendeno hergas his missis exercitibus suis, Mt. L. 22, 7. Heria manipulorum, An. Ox. 2, 443. Herium
cohortibus, 23. Hōf for hergum hlūde stefne lifgendra leōd, Exod. 276. Faraon brōhte sweord-wīgendra
sîde hergas, 260. Twelf hergas engla duodecim legiones angelorum, Mt. 26, 53. Him Perse mid heora
twǣm ealdormannum ongeān cōman . . . Sōna swā hē wiste  hē wið þā twēgen heras sceolde, Ors. 3, ; I;
S. 96, 15. (c) a particular kind of armed force, e. g. infantry, cavalry :-- Pharon hæfde syx hund
wīgwægna, and fela þæs ōðres heres wæs exercitum curribus equitibus instruction egit, Ors. I. 7; S. 38,
24. On his fēðehere wǣron xxxii M. and þæs gehorsedan (equitum] fifte healf M. 3, 9; S. 124, 12. Of
rǣdum here aequitatu, fōtgangendum here peditatu, An. Ox. 52. -. 3-4. (2) referring to English military
affairs. [In that part of the A. S. Chronicle which deals with the struggle between the English and Danes,
here is always used of the latter, fyrd being the term denoting the native force. But in the annals of the
eleventh century here is used in speaking of the English.] (a) an army :-- Harold feaht eār þan þe his here
cōme eall, Chr. 1066: P. 198, 5. Cōm Harold ūre cyng . . . mid micclan here Englisces folces (cf. mid ealre
his fyrde, 33), P. 197, 27. Se cyng mid his here fērde tō Hrofeceastre, 1087; P. 224, 8, 10, 12. On here
cringan, By. 292. Penda teāh here and fyrde wið Eāstengle, Bd. 3, 18; Sch. 274, 9. Ne onhagode him
(Godwine) tō cumenne . . . ongeān þone cyng and āgeān þone here (fyrd is used of Godwine's force ll. ii.
23, and of the force gathered to help the king, 1. 19) þe him mid wæs. Chr. 1052; P. 175, 36. Hēt se
cyning bannan ūt here, 1048; P. 174, 22. Þis wearð Harolde cyng gecȳdd, and hē gaderade þā mycelne
here (cf. Harold gegæderade sciphere (-fyrde, v.l.) and landhere (-fyrde, v. l.), P. 195, 38), 1066; P. 199,
27. Willelm cyng lǣdde Engliscne here (fyrde, v. l.) and Frencisce ofer sǣ, 1073; P. 209, 6. (b) used of a
raiding force, one that ravages a country :-- Leōfgār fōr tō fyrde ongeān Griffin þone Wyliscan cing . . .
Earfoðlic is tō ātellanne seō gedrecednes . . . þe eall Engla here dreāh. Chr. 1056; P. 186, 33. Penda cōm
mid Myrcna here (hostili exercitu), and ealle þā þe hē mihte mid īsene and fȳres lȳge hē fornam, Bd. 3,
17 ; Sch. 269, 9; Chr. 1053 ; P. 178, 39 : 1054; P. 184, 14. Ecgferð sende here on Scottas . . . and earmlīce
hī Godes cyrican hȳndan and bærndon, 684; P. 39, 13. (c) an army that comes from abroad to England :--
Willelm fērde intō Englalande mid mycelan here rīdendra manna and gangendra of Francrīce and of
Brytlande, Chr. 1085; P. 215, 35. ¶ especially of the Scandinavian invaders. (l) as raiders of the country :--
Ðis man gerǣdde ðā se micela here cōm tō lande, Wlfst. 180, 18: Ll. Th. i. 286, 7. Unrīm heriges flotan
and Sceotta, Æðelst. 31. Ðis synd þā friðmāl þe Æðelrēd cyng and ealle his witan wið ðone here gedōn
habbað ðe Anlāf and Iustin and Gūðmund mid wǣron. Ðæt ǣrost,  woroldfrið stande between Æðelrēde
cynge and eallum his leōdscipe and eallum þām here þe se cyng  feoh sealde, Ll. Th. i. 284, 6-11. Twā
and twēntig þūsend punda mon gesealde þām here wið friðe, 288, 12. (l a) the reference is probably to the
Scandinavians in the following :-- Gif hit cucu feoh wǣre and hē secgge  hit here nāme (cf.
jumentum . . . captum ab hostibus, Ex. 22, 10), Ll. Th. i. 52, 2. Ðā earman men beōð wyrs bereāfode from
þām unrihtwīsan dēman þonne fram þām wælgrimmestan here: ne bið nān heretoga swā gīfre on fræmdrea
monna yrfe swā se unrihtwīsa dēma byþ on his hȳremonna. Hē beōd wyrsan þonne herigende here, here
man maeg oft befleōn, Ll. Lbmn. 475, 14-23. (2) as settlers:-- Ōslāc eorl and eal here þe on þīs
ealdordōme wunað, Ll. Th. i. 378, 5. ÞUNCERTAIN ne þeōwe ne freō ne mōton in þone here faran būtan
leāfe, ne heora nān þe mā tō ūs, 156, l. Gefæstnode Eādweard cyng frið wið Eāst-Engla here (wið East-
Engle, v. l.), Chr. 906; P. 95, a. (ε) the word is applied to both the English and Danish forces in the
following :-- Þā heras him sylfe tōeōdan (cf. Eādmund gegaderode fyrde and þone here āflymde, 1. 5),
Chr. 1016; P. 150, 2. II. used of things that can injure :-- Mid herige hrīmes and snāwes, Men. 204. III. a
large number of people, multitude, host. (l) of persons engaged in acts of violence, v. Ll. Th. i. no, 14 in
Dict. :-- ÞUNCERTAIN here (wered, W.S.) turba; Lk. L. , R. 22, 47. Wearð eal here burhwarena blind,
Gen. 2490. Cirm hǣðnes heriges (the crowd that attacked St.Andrew). An. 1240: 1204: Ap. 21. Hī here
samnodan, An. 1126: 1189. ¶ in pl. to express great numbers :-- Sīde herigeas, An. 1069. (2) of a regular
company :-- Heofenengla here, Cri. 1278. Heres classis (monasticae), An. Ox. 5502. Gē cunnon hwæt se
hlāford is, sē þisne here lǣdeð, Cri. 574. Ælbeorhtra scolu, hergas hāligra, 930 Þas heregas þreō, se
heofonlica þreāt. . . þæt eorðlice mzgii . . . þæt helcunde wered. Wlfst. 254, 11-15. (&zeta); of a fortuitous
collection of people, a crowd, multitude :-- Wæs forlēten here (turba), Mt. L. 14, 23. ÞUNCERTAIN here,
Mk. L. 12. 41 : Lk. L. 23, 48. Synfulra here, Cri. 1533. Mið monigfald here plurima multitudme. Mk. L.
10, 46. On alle ðiosne here (turbam), Lk. L. 9, 13. ÞUNCERTAIN here, 18, 36. ¶ in pl. to express great
nun beis :-- Ðegnas saldon ðǣm hergum (turbis), Mt. L. 14, 19 : Lk. L. 7, 24. Wearð Godes āgen bearn
āhangen for herigum, El. 180: Met. 26, 57. Ðā gesæh ðe Hǣlend hergas menigo videns Jesus turbas
multas, Mt. L. 8, 18. IV. harrying, devastation, plundering, ravaging :-- Ic eōw āwerige wið hearma
gehwilcne, þæt eōw bīte ne slīte here ne hunger, Wlfst. 132, 18. Gyf hit geweorðe þæt on þeōdscype
becume heālic @bt_d0538 ungelimp, here oððon hunger, bryne oððon blodgyte, unwæstm oððon
unweder . . . 169, 16. Hē þā mǣgðe mid grimme wæle and herige on gebraec prouinciam illam saeua
caede ac depopulatione attriuit, Bd. 4, 15 ; Sch. 423, 10. v. bil-, fēþe-, gang-, hors-, land-, norþ-, rād-,
rǣde-, rīde-, stæl-, unfriþ-here. The word occurs in many proper names.

CH
here (obi. eases usu. have herg-, herig-) m.
predatory band, troop, army, host, multitude,
Ohr,Mt;A.O,Cf ('se h.' almost always=
the Danish army in CHE) : battle, war,
devastation, ['here'; Oer. heer]

MED

(h re (n.(1)) Also her, heir(e, herre, ere, har(e & (early) hære, heare, heore & hir(e, (?pl.)
heren.

[OE here. Forms with i & eo are prob. due to the influence of OE h red, h ored household.]

1.

(a) A band or host of armed men, an army (either invading or defending); (b) a host of angels or
devils; hevenes ~, helles ~; fig. devles ~, evil thoughts or desires; (c) a crowd of people,
company, multitude; a swarm of frogs; a collection of treasures; (d) in (on) bak ~, at the rear of
an army.

2.

(a) Warfare, invasion; devastation by war; mid fir and mid ~, with fire and sword; wis of ~, wise
in warfare; (b) military service or a tax in lieu of such service.

3.

In cpds. & combs.: (a) ~ gong, ~ 3(e)ong [cp. OE here-gang & ME yong n. (2)], a military
expedition, an invasion; also, devastation; heriel [cp. OE here-gild], Danegeld; ~ path [OE
here-pæþ], ~ strete [OE here-str t, -str t], an army road, a highway; also in place names; ~
wedes [cp. OE here-w d, -w d], armor; (b) ~ burne [cp. brinie], ~ shroud, a coat of mail; ~
dring, ~ thring [cp. dreng], ~ gume [cp. gome n. (1)], ~ kempe, ~ knight, a warrior; ~ fare,
military service or a tax in lieu of such service; ~ feng, booty, plunder; ~ ishole [cp. OE hand-
scolu], a band of warriors; ~ marke, a battle standard; (c) in place names [see Smith PNElem.
1.244-5]; hereford whit, a kind of cloth.

OED
† here, n. Obs.

Forms: 1–5 here, 3 hære, 4 her, 4–5 heere.

[Com. Teut.: OE. {hęre} masc., gen. hęrᴁes, hęriᴁes, hęres = OFris. here, hiri, OS. heri m. and n.
(MDu. hēre, Du. heir, heer n., LG. hêr n.), OHG. hari, hęri (MLG. here, Ger. heer) n., ON. hęrr
m., gen. hęrjar (Sw. här, Da. hær), Goth. harjis m.:—OTeut. *harjo-z, *harjom (in proper names
of Roman age chario-) = OPruss. karjiz host. App. a deriv. (adj.) from a radical har-, pre-Teut.
kar-, kor-, in sense ‘war’: cf. OSlav. kara contention, strife, Lith. kàras war. Hence harry v.,
harbour, heriot ns.]

An armed host, an army. Also, more generally: A host; a multitude, a great company.
   In the O.E. Chron. the usual word applied to the ‘host’ of the Danish invaders.

   c 855 O.E. Chron. (Parker MS.) an. 837 Þy ilcan ᴁeare ᴁefeaht Æþelhelm dux wiþ Deniscne
here.    a 890 Ibid. an. 872 Her for se here to Lunden byriᴁ from Readingum.    c 1000 Ags. Gosp.
Matt. xxii. 7 Ða se cyning‥sende hys here.    c 1200 Ormin 3889 An here off Godess enngless.
c 1205 Lay. 3830 Morgan ledde muchele hære.    c 1300 Cursor M. 21840 (Edin.) Be ur scheld
eke and ure spere Bituixin us and helles here [Cott. her, other MSS. here].    13‥ K. Alis. 5265
Tygres, olyfaunz, and beres Comen flynge with grete heres.    a 1400–50 Alexander 4800 So hard
þai hampird oure heere & herid oure erles.    1450–70 Golagros & Gaw. 1147 The tothir knightis
maid care of Arthuris here.    [1872 Robertson Hist. Ess. 137 Over 35 men (or 3 × 12) constituted
a Here by Ini's laws.]

b.b attrib. and Comb., as here-burne, a coat of mail; here-dring, a warrior; here-feng, booty; here-
gang, an invasion by an army; here-gume, here-kempe, a warrior; here-marke, a standard, ensign;
here-scrud (-shroud), here-weeds, armour, martial accoutrements; (all only OE. and early ME.).
Also herefare, a military expedition (in 17th c. legal antiquaries). See also heregeld, heretoga,
hereyeld.

   Beowulf (Z.) 1443 Scolde *here-byrne hondum ᴁe-broden.    c 1205 Lay. 23966 Þe helm an his
hæuede, and his hereburne.

   Ibid. 8601 Ȝif here is æi *heredring.

   Ibid. 11716 Heo funden *herre-feng inoh.

   10‥ tr. Bæda's Hist. i. xi. [xiv.] (MS. B), To wiðscufanne swa reðum *heregange.    c 1205
Lay. 18194 In þan hire-ȝeonge inne Walisc londe.    a 1250 Owl & Night. 1191 Ich wot of
hunger, of hergonge.    c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 4094 Here is comand to this lond Gret hunger, and
here gong.

   c 1205 Lay. 14534 Þus heo comen‥hæðene *here-gumen.

   Ibid. 28284 Sixti þusende *here-kempen harde.

   Ibid. 27469 Feollen *here-mærken [c 1275 hire markes].    Ibid. 28546 Heo‥heuen here-
marken.

   Ibid. 5069 Leie a-dun þin *hære-scrud.

   Beowulf (Z.) 1897 Sæ-ᴁeap naca hladen *here-wædum.    a 1400–50 Alexander 1010 Al to
heuy to be hildid in any here wedis.

   1626 Spelman Gloss., Herefare, profectio militaris.    1670 Blount Law Dict., Herefare.    1672
Cowell's Interpr. s.v. Subsidy, Burgbote, Brigbote, Herefare, Heregeld, etc.

herewæd
BT
here-wǣd, e; f. War-weed, armour, Beo. Th. 3798; B. 1897. [Icel. her-vāðir armour.] v. Grmm. R. A.
566-7.

BTs

CH
herewæd f. -mail, armour, B 1897.

MED

w de (n.(2)) Also w d, vede, (SW) weode, (early) wehit & w de, (early) wæde & (?error) wete;
pl. wedes, etc. & wede(n, weddis & (early) wæde(n, (SW) weaden.

[OE w d, (Nhb.) w d & w de, (Nhb.) w de.]

(a) A garment, an article of clothing; also, coll. & pl. clothes, apparel, attire; also fig. & in fig.
context; ~ brech [cp. OE w d-br c], some kind of covering for the loins; cloth ~; hali-dai
wedes, festive garments; in on ~, in the same kind of clothing, in one and the same manner of
dress;
(b) usu. coll. or pl. clothing indicative of a particular affiliation, status, or sex; a religious habit,
religious garb; mannes (palmeres, pilgrimes, etc.) ~; religious ~, the garb of a religious; widwe
wede(s, widow's weeds, mourning garments;

(c) an article of protective clothing or battle apparel; a coat of mail; a piece of armor; ?also, a
royal symbol or token [quot. 1415]; coll. & pl. armor, battle gear; here wedes [cp. OE here-w
d], armor; iren (stele) wede(s, irnen (stelen) ~, armor of iron (steel), coats of mail;

(d) a cloth used as a covering, a seat or floor covering, cushion; also, coll. cloth coverings,
bedclothes, swaddling clothes;

(e) fig. a covering, cover; the covering of the flesh; also, guise, aspect, appearance; under ~, in a
disguise, covertly, secretly; -- freq. used coll.; under oure ~, in our likeness;

(f) coll. & pl. with diminished force in generalizing phrases, often used for alliteration or as mere
rime tag: in (under) wede(s, in clothing; in the world;

(g) anat. a membranous covering or envelope (for the brain).

OED
weed, n.2 arch. exc. in sense 6 b.

(wiːd)

Forms: 1 {wǽd}, wǽde, North. wéde, w‹oeacu›de, 3 Orm. wæde, pl. weaden, 3–6 wede, 3–4 pl.
weden, 4 north. and Sc. wed, veid, ved, (5 pl. vedis), 4–7 Sc. weid(e, 5–6 Sc. weyd, 6–7 wide, 4–
7 weede, 5– weed.

[ME. wēde, repr. two formations: (1) OE. wǽd fem. = OS. wâd (MLG. wât), OHG., MHG. wât
(early mod.G. wat), also in comb. lînwát fem., linen (= Du. lijnwaad neut.; mod.G. in perverted
form leinwand), ON. váð, vóð fem. (Norw. vaad, Sw. våd):—OTeut. *wǣđi-z; (2) OE. wǽde str.
neut. = OS. wâdi (MLG. wêde), prob. shortened from the collective formation OE. ᴁewǽde (ME.
i-wede), OS. giwâdi, Du. gewaad, OHG. giwâti:—OTeut. type *gawǣđjo-m.
   It is disputed whether the Teut. *wǣđi- descends from a pre-Teut. *wēti-, root *wē- to weave
(= Skr. vā), or from *wēdhi-, root *w‹emacbreve›dh- (= Zend vad to clothe oneself; the Goth. ga-
widan (OHG. wetan), to join together, is by some regarded as cognate).]

1.1 An article of apparel; a garment.

   c 888 Ælfred Boeth. xxviii, Ðeah nu se unrihtwisa cynig Neron hine ᴁescyrpte mid eallum þam
wliteᴁestum wædum.    c 1000 Ælfric Hom. II. 500 Martinus me bewæfde efne mid ðyssere
wæde.    a 1225 Ancr. R. 314 Uorði þet heo hefde ileaned one wummone to one wake on of hore
weaden.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1972 He‥boden him sen If his childes wede it miȝte ben.    c 1350
Will. Palerne 2563 Ȝif we walken in þes wedes‥what man so vs metes may vs sone knowe.
13‥ Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 2358 Hit is my wede þat þou werez, þat ilke wouen girdel.    c 1430 Chev.
Assigne 119 Of sadde leues of þe wode wrowȝte he hem wedes.    1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph.
289 b, By & by dooyng on hym a wede aunswerable vnto his presente fortune, he fled awaye
secretely.    1569 J. Sandford tr. Agrippa's Van. Artes xxv. 36 There was an obstinate strife‥
concerning the habite, or apparrel of S. Augustine, that is to saie, whether he did weare a blacke
weede vpon a white Coate, or a white weede vpon a blacke Coate.    1614 Camden Rem., Apparel
233 They‥began to wanton it in a new round curtall weede which they called a Cloake.    1621
Fletcher Pilgr. v. vi, To my house now, and suite you to your worths; Off with these weeds, and
appeare glorious.    a 1706 in Watson's Collect. Sc. Poems i. 35 On Sabbath days his Cap was
fedder'd, A seemly Weid.    1725 Pope Odyss. xvi. 293 An aged mendicant in tatter'd weeds.
1764 H. Walpole Otranto v, One in a long, woolen weed.    1805 Wordsw. Prelude iii. 457 Spare
diet, patient labour, and plain weeds.    1808 Scott Marm. v. vi, The Baron dons his peaceful
weeds.    1846 Keble Lyra Innoc. (1873) 168 Her innocent vesture, the pure Chrisom weed.
1850 Tennyson In Mem. v. 9 In words, like weeds, I'll wrap me o'er, Like coarsest clothes against
the cold.

2.2 collect. sing. Clothing, raiment, dress, apparel.

   a 1000 Daniel 103 Þæt þam ᴁengum þrym gad ne wære wiste ne wæde.    c 1290 St. Mary of
Egypt 160 in S. Eng. Leg. 265 Ne wilne þou nouȝt þat ich þe abide, for ich am withoute wede.
a 1300 K. Horn 1052 We schulle chaungi wede: Haue her cloþes myne, & tak me þi sclauyne.
1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xxiii. 211 Lacke shal þe neuere Wede ne worldlich mete.    c 1450 Mirk's
Festial 9, I stale forþe yn pore wede.    1551 Crowley Pleas. & Payne 140 Wyllynge that eche
should at his nede, Haue breade and broth, harbour and wede.    1576 Hanmer Anc. Eccl. Hist.,
Socr. Schol. ii. xxxiii. 292 A little before he had bene deposed‥for apparelling himselfe in such
weede as was not decent for the dignity and order of priesthood.    1595 Spenser Colin Clout 713
For each mans worth is measured by his weed.    1616 Chapman tr. Musæus F 6, This sayd, his
faire Limbes of his weede, he strip't.    1788 Burns Written in Friars-Carse Hermitage 2 Be thou
clad in russet weed.    1868–70 Morris Earthly Par. I. i. 250 In face, in figure, and in weed, She
wholly changed before his wondering eyes.    Ibid. 325 Who robbed me, and with blows Stripped
off my weed and left me on the way.

†b.2.b In the expletive phrase in weed or under weed, usually appended to an adj., as worth(l)y,
wight, wise. Cf. under gore, gore n.2 2. Obs.

   c 1330 Amis & Amil. 30 Twoo ladyes‥That worthi were in wede.    c 1350 Will. Palerne 585
Of lumbardie a dukes douȝter ful derworþ in wede.    a 1352 Minot Poems ix. 37 Iohn of
Coupland, a wight man in wede.    c 1400 Emare 250 Then sayde þat wordy vnþur wede.    a 1435
Torr. Portugal 2397 One of the ffeyrest knyghtis That slepith on somer nyghtes Or walkyd in
wede.    a 1440 Sir Degrev. 392 Many bold mene and wyght, Wyse undere wede.    c 1460
Towneley Myst. xviii. 230 Yond worthy wyghtys in wede.    a 1580 Murning Maiden 55 in Maitl.
Fol. MS. 361 Than wepit scho lustie in weyd.

3.3 transf. and fig. (e.g. our ‘garment’ of flesh).

   c 1320 Cast. Love 657 God‥Þat from heuene dude alihte, And vnder vre wede vre kynde nom.
c 1374 Chaucer Troylus iii. 1431 O blake nyght‥That shapen art by god þis world to hide At
certeyn tymes with þi derke wede.    1390 Gower Conf. II. 335 Sche flih before his yhe a
Crowe‥To kepe hire maidenhede whit Under the wede of fethers blake.    14‥ Lydg. Ballad of
Deceitful Women 26 Hir galle is hid under a sugred wede.    1557 N. Grimalde in Tottel's Misc.
(Arb.) 96 As morning bright, with scarlet sky, doth passe the euenings weed.    1567 Jewel Def.
Apol. ii. 221 Therefore the Greekes calle Baptisme, ἀϕθαρσίας ἔνδυµα, That is, the Weede of
immortalitie.    1590 Shakes. Mids. N. ii. i. 256 And there the snake throwes her enammel'd
skinne, Weed wide enough to rap a Fairy in.    1613–16 Browne Brit. Past. i. i. 11 That heart‥
That neuer wore dissimulations weed.    a 1618 Ralegh Rem. (1644) 116 Being stripped out of
this mortall weed.    a 1639 Carew Comparison 20 Thy skin's a heavenly and immortall weede.
1785 Burns Scotch Drink vii, Aft, clad in massy, siller weed, Wi' Gentles thou erects thy head.
1793 ― By Allan Stream 20 How cheery through her shortening day Is Autumn, in her weeds o'
yellow.    1805–6 Cary Dante, Inf. xxxiii. 60 Father,‥thou gavest These weeds of miserable
flesh we wear; And do thou strip them off from us again.

4.4 Used contextually for: Defensive covering, armour, mail. collect. sing. or pl. Also iron weed,
steel weed.

   c 1205 Lay. 23773 Þe king mid his weden [c 1275 wede] leop on his stede.    c 1350 Will.
Palerne 3535 Was non so stif stelen wede þat withstod his wepen.    1375 Barbour Bruce xvi. 580
A chemeyr, for till heill his veid, Aboue his armyng had he then.    c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 3994
Thei‥drow out horses and stedes And here strong Iren wedes.    c 1470 Henry Wallace ii. 112
The thrid he straik throuch his pissand of maile, The crag in twa; no weidis mycht him waill.
1480 Robt. Devyll 910 in Hazl. E.P.P. I. 254 Greate horses stamped in yron wedes.    1515
Scottish Field 537 in Chetham Misc. II, They will sticke with their standarts in their stele weedes.
1611 W. Austin in Coryat's Crudities Panegyr. Verses g 5 b, His garments‥Which heretofore
like weedes of proofe Serued him to keepe the colde aloofe.    1813 Scott Trierm. iii. xx, Oh for
his arms! Of martial weed Had never mortal Knight such need!

5.5 A garment, or garb, distinctive of a person's sex, profession, state of life. a.5.a sing. (collect.
or particular).

   1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 4918 Sire bissop wu ne ȝifstus of þine wite brede þat þou est þi sulf at þi
masse in þine vayre wede.    a 1300 Cursor M. 23981 Wede o welth wil i namar, Clething wil i
me tak o care.    13‥ Guy Warw. 1721 Gij seye a man of rewly ble Go in pilgrims wede.    1303
R. Brunne Handl. Synne 2343 Seþyn toke þe knyȝt palmers wede.    c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees)
6548 Þat day þat cuthbert toke bischop wede.    1470–85 Malory Arthur xvii. ix. 702 They‥sawe
the good man in a relygyous wede.    1581 J. Bell Haddon's Answ. Osor. 276 b, Such as are
buryed in the cowle & weede of a Franciscane Fryer.    1587 Fleming Contn. Holinshed III.
1280/1 Wherin also is buried John Yoong‥in his doctors weed.    1605 P. Erondelle Fr. Gard. G 
3 b, It is not the weed yt maketh the monke.    a 1670 Spalding Troub. Chas. I (Bannatyne Club) I.
16 This was the ordinary weid of thir his majestie's foot guards.    1684 Bunyan Pilgr. ii. 153
They neither have the Pilgrim's Weed nor the Pilgrim's Courage.    1859 Tennyson Enid 1528
This poor gown, This silken rag, this beggar-woman's weed.

b.5.b pl.
   1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. vi. 7 Apparayled as a Palmere In pilgrimes wedes.    c 1450 in Kingsford
Chron. Lond. (1905) 129 Sche eschapede thens in a mannys weeds.    1570 Googe Popish Kingd.
iii. 39 b, Who can declare the massing weedes?    1590 Spenser F.Q. i. Introd. i, Whose Muse
whilome did maske‥in lowly Shepheards weeds.    1650 Howell Giraffi's Rev. Naples i. 89, I
wold never have shaken off my mariners weeds.    1667 Milton P.L. iii. 479 They who to be sure
of Paradise Dying put on the weeds of Dominic.    1673 Hickeringill Greg. Father Greyb. 74 A
Conformist Minister with all his Aaronical weeds on.    1763 C. Johnston Reverie II. 104 Though
he was habited in the humble weeds of a slave.    1781 Cowper Truth 81 In shirt of hair and
weeds of canvass dress'd.    1838 Prescott Ferd. & Is. ii. xxi. III. 372 The spirit of the soldier
burned strong and bright under his monastic weeds.

c.5.c Sometimes without specifying word = a palmer's dress, the religious habit, etc. (as indicated
by the context).

   c 1400 Rule St. Benet (verse) 1338 If ane so for wikkid dede Leue hir abbay & hir wede.    c 
1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon xxi. 459 He shet the dore of his chapell, and toke his wede & his
staffe.    1561 T. Hoby tr. Castiglione's Courtyer ii. Z ij, The frier‥beesought me to lett him goe
downe, and not to showe suche shame to the weede.    1706 [see 6 b].    1760–72 H. Brooke Fool
of Qual. (1809) I. 147, I gave her two-pence, re-assumed my former garb, and left my weeds in
her custody.

6.6 With defining word, esp. mourning: A black garment worn in token of bereavement;
mourning apparel. Also, a scarf or band of crape worn by a mourner.

   1536 Bellenden Cron. Scot. (1821) II. 165 This other sall pas in dolorus weid, on ane blak hors.
1546 in Strype Eccl. Mem. (1721) II. App. A. 4 Commandment was given‥to‥put on them
every man his mourning weeds.    1592 Kyd Sp. Trag. i. iii. 20 Let Fortune doe her worst, She
will not rob me of this sable weed.    1603 H. Petowe Eliza's Funeral A 4, Then weepe no more,
Your sighing weedes put off.    1656 Earl of Monmouth tr. Boccalini's Advts. fr. Parnass. 289
Being clad in a long mourning weed, he appeared in the Colledge of the Litterati.    1787 Burns
On Death Sir J. Hunter Blair 15 A stately Form In weeds of woe.    1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle
Tom's C. xxvii, People who saw him in the street‥knew of his loss only by the weed on his hat.
Ibid. xxviii, A long strip of black crape, torn from the funeral weeds.    1905 Eng. Dial. Dict.,
Weed, a band of cloth or crêpe for a man's hat in time of mourning. W. Yks.

b.6.b spec. The deep mourning worn by a widow, including a crape veil, ‘weepers,’ etc. Now
always pl.; with or without widow's prefixed. (The sing. seems to have been used formerly to
mean the veil.)
   The only use of the word now generally known; quite colloq. while the custom of wearing deep
mourning was still widespread.

   1595 Locrine v. i. 24 Let her there prouide her mourning weeds And mourn for euer her owne
widdow-hood.    1706 S. Centlivre Platonick Lady i. iii. 14 The disconsolate Wife having
borrowed a Weed of her Neighbour, is consulting her Glass to see how it becomes her.    1706
Phillips (ed. Kersey), Weed or Wede, a Garment or Suit of Cloaths; whence it is still us'd for a
Frier's Habit, a Widow's Vail, &c.    1711 Addison Spect. No. 44 ⁋4 An afflicted Widow in her
Mourning-Weeds.    1715 ― Drummer ii. i, The Taylor had made her Widow's weeds.    1748
Richardson Clarissa (1768) VII. 117 What a charming widow would she have made! How would
she have adorned the weeds!    1749 Fielding Tom Jones iii. i, As this [her habit] changed from
weeds to black, from black to grey, from grey to white.    1836 Dickens Sk. Boz, Parish vii, The
mother wore a widow's weeds.    1849 Thackeray Pendennis iii, There were no entertainments‥
during the year of her weeds.    1887 Poor Nellie (1888) 428 He had heard the cook remark‥that
his mother would now wear weeds.

†7.7 A cloth, covering, hanging, or the like. Also collect. sing. Obs.

   c 1200 Ormin 8171 All þatt wæde þatt tær wass Uppo þe bære fundenn, All wass itt off þe
bettste pall.    c 1400 Destr. Troy 372 And þan sylen to sitte vppon silke wedis.    c 1440 Pallad.
on Husb. i. 830 Eek as for hail a russet weede is To kest vpon the querne [L. Panno roseo mola
cooperitur].    1582 Stanyhurst Æneis iii. (Arb.) 72 With black weede the altar is hanged.

hildegeatwe
BT
hilde-geatwe 5 pl. f. War equipments, Beo. Th. 1353; B. 674: 4713; B. 2362.

BTs

CH
hildegeatwe† fp. war-harness.

MED

OED

hild
BT
hild, e; f. [a poetical word] War, battle; pugna, prælium:-- In the Scandinavian mythology Hildr is the
name of one of the Valkyrias, and Grimm considers that the word occurs, denoting a person, in the Anglo-
Saxon poetry, e. g. gif mec hild nime. Beo. Th. 909; B. 452: 2967; B. 1481. v. Grmm. D. M. 392 sqq. Hild
sweðrode war ceased, Beo. Th. 1807; B. 901: 3180; B. 1585: 3698; B. 1847: Andr. Kmbl. 2840; An.
1422: Elen. Kmbl. 36; El. 18: 298; El. 149. Hyne Hetware hilde gehnǣgdon him the Hetwaras conquered
in battle, Beo. Th. 5825; B. 2916: 4159; B. 2076: 4586; B. 2298: Exon. 100a; Th. 378, 10; Deōr. 14:
Menol. Fox 493; Gn. C. 17: Apstls. Kmbl. 41; Ap. 21: Cd. 150; Th. 188, 3; Exod. 162. Nǣfre hit æt hilde
ne swāc manna ǣngum never had it failed in fight any man, Beo. Th. 2925; B 1460: 3322; 6. 1659: 5143;
B. 2575: 5361; B. 2684: Cd. 98; Th. 129, 25; Gen. 2149: Byrht. Th. 133, 24; By. 55: 135, 24; By. 123:
138, 20; By. 223: 140, 14; By. 324: 131, 15; By. 8: Wald. 6; Vald. 1. 4: Andr. Kmbl. 823; An. 412: Salm.
Kmbl. 320; Sal. 159: Fins. Th. 75; Fin. 37: Wald. 55; Vald. 1, 30: Exon. 79a; Th. 297, 5; Crä. 63: 104a;
Th. 395, 7; Rä. 15, 4: 120a; Th. 461, 17; Hö. 37: Cd. 95; Th. 124, 11; Gen. 2061: 155; Th. 193, 5; Exod.
241: Elen. Kmbl. 63; El. 32: 97; El. 49: 103; El, 52: 129; El. 65. Ongenþeōw hæfde Higelāces hilde
gefrunen Ongentheow had heard of Higelac's fighting, Beo. Th. 5897; B. 2952: 1299; B. 647: 3984; 3.
1990: @bt_b0536 Wald. 87; Vald. 2, 15: Exon. 16 a; Th. 35, 31; Cri. 566: Cd. 151; Th. 189, 3; Exod. 181:
167; Th. 209, 25; Exod. 504: Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 9; Jud. 251. Heardre hilde with hard fighting, Elen.
Kmbl. 165; El. 83: Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 36; Jud. 294. Fela ic gebād heardra hilda many hard battles have I
experienced, Fins. Th. 52; Fin. 26: Andr. Kmbl. 2980; An. 1493. [O. Sax. hild: Icel. hildr: O. H. Ger. hilt.
v. Grff. iv. 912.]

BTs
hild grace. Substitute: hild, es; m. I. watchful care, safe keeping exercised by a person with respect to (l)
persons :-- Þū eart se gooda gleāw on gesyhðe þāra hāligra þe þīnne held curan, Ps. Th. 51, 8. Hālgum
gāstum þe his hyld curon, Dan. 481. Hiē on friðe Drihtnes of þām grimman gryre glade treddedon,
gleāwmōde guman on gāstes hyld, 440. Folc wæs on lande; hæfde wuldres beām werud gelǣded on hild
Godes, Exod. 568. (2) things :-- Onbyhtscealcas þe on Godes hūse gearwe standað, and on cafertūnum
Crīstes hūses, ūres þæs hālgan Godes, held begangað (-eð, MS.) who ore caretakers in the house of God;
servi qut statis in domo Domini, in atriis domus Dei nostri. Ps. Th. 133, 2. II. preservation, safety
experienced by a person :-- Þæt hī fore his hyldon (gehylde, v. l.) heora bēne geōten pro eius custodia
preces fundant, Bd. I. 27; Sch. 73, 14. v. ge-hild.

CH
hild I.† f. war, battle, combat. II. =hield,

MED

OED

hildesceorp
BT
hilde-sceorp, es; n. War-clothing, Beo. Th. 4316; B. 2155.

BTs

CH

MED

OED
herewǣd
BT
here-wǣd, e; f. War-weed, armour, Beo. Th. 3798; B. 1897. [Icel. her-vāðir armour.] v. Grmm. R. A.
566-7.

BTs

CH

MED

OED

hrægl
BT
hrægel, hrægl, es; n. A garment, dress, robe, rail [in night-rail] clothing :-- Gerǣwen hrægel segmentata
vestis: þicce gewefen hrægel pavidensis: þenne gewefen hrægel levidensis: purpuren hrægel clavus vel
purpura: feala hiwes hrægel polymita: wōgum bewerod hrægel ralla vel rasilis: geedniwod eald hrægel
interpola vestis: geclūtad hrægel panucla: gediht hrægel acupicta: þrȳlen hrægel trilicis, Ælfc. Gl. 63;
Som. 68, 99-109; Wrt. Voc. 40, 10-19. Hrægl and hringas robe and rings, Beo. Th. 2394; B. 1195. Sæt
ðǣr sum þearfa nacod bæd hrægles and ælmessan a beggar sat there naked asked for a garment and an
alms, Blickl. Homl. 213, 33. Hrægles þearfa ic mē leāfum þecce lacking raiment I cover me with leaves,
Cd. 40; Th. 53, 25; Gen. 866. Ðisses hrægles neōt use this robe, Beo. Th. 2439; B. 1217. Wīf mōton under
brūnun hrægle tō hūsle gān mulieribus licet sub nigro velamine eucharistiam accipere, L. Ecg. C. 37; Th.
ii. 162, 7. Wese hē hrægle gelīc fiat ei sicut vestimentum, Ps. Th. 108, 19. Mid mete and mid hrægle with
food and clothing, Blickl. Homl. 41, 29. Se ðe mid ðon ānum hrægle wæs gegyrwed who was dressed in
that one garment, 169, 1. On medmyclum hrægle gehealdene moderate in dress, 185, 17. Man hine
forbærneþ mid his wǣpnum and hrægle he is burnt with his arms and clothing, Ors. 1, 1; Swt. 21, 8. Ðæt
hrægl ðe hē ǣr ðæm þearfan sealde the cloak that he had given to the beggar, Blickl. Homl. 215, 18: 223,
8. Ongan his hrægl teran began to rend his robe, Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 28; Jud. 283. Ða hwītan hrægl ðara
engla the white robes of the angels, Blickl. Homl. 121, 24. Sylle earmum mannum his ealde hrægl let him
give his old clothes to the poor, 53, 13. Hie hæfdon manige glengas deōrwyrþra hrægla they had many
ornaments of costly garments, 99, 19. Beaduscrūda betst hrægla sēlest, Beo. Th. 912; B. 454. Ān cild
hreglum [hræglum, MS. C.] bewunden infantem pannis involutum, Lk. Skt. 2, 12. Mid godwebbenum
hræglum with purple raiment, Blickl. Homl. 95, 20. @bt_b0556 Hrægl spolia, Ps. Spl. 67, 13. [O. Frs.
hreil, reil: O. H. Ger. hregil indumentum, coturnus; pl. trophæa, spolia.] DER. beadu-, beōd-, brēc-,
frum-, fyrd-, hrycg-, mere-, set-, setl-, wīte-hrægel.

BTs
hrægl. Add: I. a garment, vestment:--Þynwefen hrægl levidensis (vestis), Wrt. Voc. ii. 54, 17. Hrægl
peplum, An. Ox. 18 b, 74. Ðæt hrægl superhumerale, Past. 83, 22. Sceolde beōn āwriten siō racu ðæs
dōmes on ðǣm hrægle ðe mon hǣt rationale . . . On ðǣm selfan hrægle ðe hē on his breōstum wæg . . .
Swīðe ryhte ðæt hrægl is gehāten ðæt se sācerd beran sceolde ðæs dōmes racu, 77, 8-23. Hrecgli, hraecli
amiculo, Txts. 41, 155. Preōst hine clǣnsie in his hālgum hrægle (or under II a ? v. mæsse-hrægel)
ætforan wiōfode, Ll. Th. i. 40, 15. Gearwende hine mið hrægle (clamyde), Mt. L. 27, 27. Mið fellereōde
hrægle purpura, Mk. L. 15, 17. Cyrtel ł hrægl ðīn and hrægl ł hæcla tunicam tuam et pallium, Mt. L. 5, 40.
 purbple hrægl purpureum uestimentum, Jn. L. 19, 5. Gif mon næbbe būton ānfeald hrægl hine mid tō
wreōnne oþþe tō werianne, Ll. Th. i. 52, 24. Hī scīnaþ on manegra cynna hræglum (cf. wǣdum, Met. 25,
4) purpura claros nitente, Bt. 37, 1; F. 186, 3. 'Bring mē þā hrægl (vestimenta)' . . . þā hī þās hrægl
gesāwon . . . hī onfēngon heora āgenu hrægl, Gr. D. 202, 23-203, 2. Hrægla, Mt. L. 26, 67: 27, 35. Woedo
ł hræglo ł clāþas, Mk. L. 14, 63. II. with collective force, dress, garments, clothes, clothing, raiment:--Siō
mennisce wǣdl wilnað . . . ǣgðer ge hrægles ge metes ge drynces, Bt. 26, 2; S. 60, 18. Hī hine hrægles
bǣdon (vestimenta petebant) . . . Se þegn  hrægl (uestimenta) brōhte tō þām lāreōwe . . . hē cwæð:
'Cumað, nimað þis hrægl and scrȳdað eōw mid,' Gr. D. 202, 20-28. Horses hȳde hī habbað him tō hrægle
gedōn pelliculas equorum ad uestimentum habentes, Nar. 38, 2. Mid swelce hrægle (veste) hē in eōde, mid
swelce gange hē ūt, Ll. Th. i. 46, 3. II a. clothes that a person is wearing, (a person's) dress:--Gif hwā
nunnan . . . on hire hrægl gefō, Ll. Th. 72, 9. III. cloth, material of which clothing for persons or
coverings for things are made:--In huītum hrægle (or under I ?) and on asca in cilicio et cinere, Lk. L. R.
10, 13. Sȳ on wintra seō cuhle of þiccum hrægle, R. Ben. 8, 11. III a. a cloth (e. g. an altar-cloth. v.
wīgbed-hrægel), a sheet, a covering (e. g. of a wall. v. wāg-hrægl):--Is ofer his byrgenne stōwe
treōwgeweorc on gelīcnesse medmycles hūses geworht mid hrægle (hrægele, v. l.) gegearwod (coopertus),
Bd. 4, 3; Sch. 366, 10. Līchoma innbewand mid līnene hrægle corpus inuoluit sindone, Lk. L. 23, 53. In
hrægle (scētan, R., scȳtan, W. S.) clǣnum in sindone mundo, Mt. L. 27. 59. Hiā biuundun hine mið
linninum hræglum (mid līnenum clāðe, W. S.) ligauerunt eum linteis, Jn. L. 19, 40. Wǣfelsum, hræglum
sabanis (in sabanis et sindonibus bajulabantur aegroti, Ald. 49, 18), An. Ox. 3588. Rægelum, 2, 229. v.
bearm-, deād-, hand-, heāfod-, līc-, mæsse-, mēs-, on-, sculdor-, stric-, wāg-, wīf-, wīgbed-hræg(e)l.

CH
hraegl n. (e) dress, clothing, Gl,Jn; AO.CP :
armour : sail, ['rail']

MED

OED

hyrst
BT
hyrst, e; f. An ornament, a decoration, jewel, anything of value, trapping, equipment, armour,
implement :-- Hyrsta falerarum, Wrt. Voc. ii. 36, 74. Hryste farelas, 108, 34. Hyrsta scȳne bord and brād
swyrd brūne helmas beautiful equipments, shield and broad sword, brown helms, Judth. 12; Thw. 26, 9;
Jud. 317: Fins. Th. 41; Fin. 20. Bēg and siglu eall swylce hyrsta swylce on horde ǣr men genumen hæfdon
ring[s] and jewels, just such ornaments as before men had taken in the hoard, Beo. Th. 6309; B. 3165.
Īren byrnan heard swyrd hilted and his helm hāres hyrste the iron byrnie, the hard and hilted sword, and
his helm, the hoary one's equipments, 5968; B. 2988. Hyrste [hyrsta, Soul Kmbl. 114] ða reādan ne gold
ne seolfor [not] the red ornaments, nor gold nor silver, Exon. 99 a; Th. 370, 15; Seel. 57. Hwīlum mec
āhebbaþ hyrste mīne sometimes my trappings [wings] raise me up, 103 a; Th. 390, 1; Rä. 8, 4: 103 b; Th.
392, 16; Rä. 11, 8: Th. 392, 24; Rä. 12, 1. Hyrste gerīm rodores tungel number [heaven's] ornaments, the
stars of the firmament, Cd. 100; Th. 132, 7; Gen. 2189. Ðeāh ðe hyrsta unrīm ǣhte though he owned
jewels unnumbered, Exon. 66 b; Th. 245, 12; Jul. 43. Ne mōt hē ðara hyrsta hionane lǣdan wuhte ðon
māre hordgestreōna ðonne hē hiðer brohte defunctum leves non comitantur opes, Bt. Met. Fox 14, 17-22;
Met. 14, 9-11. Fyrnmanna fatu hyrstum behrorene vessels of men of old, deprived of their ornaments, Beo.
Th. 5517; B. 2762. Hilderincas hyrstum gewerede, Elen. Kmbl. 526; El. 263. Hyrstum frætwed wlitig on
wāge. Exon. 104 a; Th. 395, 22; Rä. 15, 11: 108 b; Th. 413, 15; Rä. 32, 20: 113 b; Th. 436, 1; Rä. 54, 7:
129 a; Th. 495, 22; Rä. 85, 7. [O. H. Ger. hrusti, Grff. ii. 546 ] DER. ge-, wīg-hyrst.

BTs
hyrst. Add: I. a wood, copse :-- Hec sunt pascua porcorurn . . . ilia silua sandhyrst norninatur, C. D. ii. 65,
8. II. an eminence, knoll :-- Wermōd on hyrstum heasewe standeđ (cf. wermōd byđ cenned on dūnum and
on stǣnilicum stōwum, Lch. i. 216, 19) glauca absinthia campi, Rä. 41, 61. ¶ The word occurs in a great
many place-names. Where the first part of the compound is the name of a tree hyrst probably belongs to I.
e. g. æsc-, hæsel-, hnut-, holen-, mapolder-, seal-, þorn-hyrst. So, too, perhaps in earnes, ūlan hyrst. But in
some others it might belong to II, e. g. cysel-hyrst. [v. N. B. D. hurst.]
rak

CH

MED

OED

gerǣde
BT
ge-rǣde; adj. Ready, swift, prompt, easy, plain, simple; paratus, celer, promptus, expeditus, planus,
simplex :-- He gedyde mīne fēt swā gerǣde swā swā heorotum qui perfecit pedes meos [celeres] tanquam
cervi, Ps. Th. 17, 32. Ge meterfers, ge gerǣdre sprǣce et versibus heroicis, et simplici oratione, Bd. 4, 28;
S. 605, 13: 5, 18; S. 636, 6; Bd. 5, 24; S. 648, 27. [Icel. greiðr ready, free: cf. North. E. gradely.] v. rǣde,
ge-rād.
BTs

CH

MED

OED

searo

A HELMET

bānhelm
BT
bān-helm, es; m. A bone-helm, shield; ossium galea, clipeus, Fins. Th. 60; Fin. 30.

BTs

CH

MED

OED

bān
BT
BĀN, baan, es; pl. bān; n. A BONE; os :-- Ðis ys nū bān of mīnum bānum hoc nunc os ex ossibus meis,
Gen. 2, 23. Moises nam Iosepes bān mid, him tulit Moyses ossa Ioseph secum, Ex. 13, 19: Cd. 9; Th. 12,
9; Gen. 182. Hīg synt innan fulle deādra bāna intus plena sunt ossibus mortuorum, Mt. Bos. 23, 27. Bān
mīne my bones, Ps. Spl. 6, 2: Exon. 110a; Th. 421, 14; Rä. 40, 18: 125b; Rä. 68, 3: Beo. Th. 5149; B.
2578. [Plat. been, n. os, crus: O. Sax. O. Frs. bēn, n: Dut, been, n: Ger. M. H. Ger. bein, n: O. H. Ger.
pein, n: Dan. been: Swed. ben: O. Nrs. bein, n. In Goth. the word is preserved only in baina-bagms a
bone-tree, cornel-tree, for σνκάμινos. Thus, all the Teut. languages have the same word, the chief and
oldest signification of which is os a bone. This is the only meaning it has in A. Sax. where scanca is used
for crus; also in O. Nrs. the meaning crus is very rare, the more common word being leggr a leg. The
Sansk. Lat. Grk. and the Slav. languages use a totally different root,-Sansk. asthi os: Lat. os: Grk. όστέoν:
the Slav. branch kost, Boh. kost, Pol. kosc, all with an initial k. Grimm, Wrtbch. i. 1381, suggests, if crus
could be proved to be the original meaning of bān, it might be related to βαίνειν, in the same way as
Sansk. asthi to στήναι.] DER. breōst-bān, cin-, elpen-, hrycg-, wīdo-, ylpen-.

BTs
bān. Add:--Bān os. Wrt. Voc. i. 44, 22: 70, 46. I. bone:--Þū eart mīn bān and mīn flǣsc, Gen. 29, 14: Ps.
Th. 138, 13. Ne bān ne blōd, Dōm. 40. Þæt gafol bið on hwales bāne, Ors. 1, 1; S. 18, 17. Hiē habbað
swīþe æþele bān on hiora tōþum, 17, 36. Hrepa his bān and his flǣsc tange os ejus et carnem, Hml. Th. ii.
452, 19: Ph. 221. I a. of other hard material:--Siō ecg gewāc on bāne (the hide of the firedrake), B. 2578.
Wæter wearð tō bāne (ice), Rä. 68, 3. II. a bone:--Bānes byrst, Ps. Th. 108, 18: Gū. 670. Gīf man findeð
ān bān unforbærned, Ors. 1, 1; S. 21, 12. Gif hwā mid his fēt ofstepð ǣttrig bān snacan oððe nǣddran,
Lch. i. 152, 2. Hwǣr sint nū þæs Wēlondes bān?, Bt. 19; F. 70, 5. Ne synu ne bān lāgon, An. 1421. Þā
gebrocenan bān, Ps. C. 81: Hy. 7, 88. Bāna ossuum, Kent. Gl. 571: Ph. 575. Manna bān ossa hominum, Ps.
Th. 52, 6. Bānu handlian, Lch. iii. 208, 24. II a. the bone of a limb, a leg or arm. v. bān-beorg, -gebeorg,
-rift:--Bān weornedon their limbs failed them, Sat. 468. Bāna coxarum, Wrt. Voc. ii. 17, 66: 75, 27.
Wǣron þā bendas forburnene, þā him on bānum lāgon, Dan. 435. Fȳrdraca heals ealne ymbefēng biteran
bānum, B. 2692. v. heāfod-, hleōr-, hring-, scin-, sweor-, wiþo- (not wīdo) -bān.

CH

MED
A bone of the human or animal body; also, an anatomical unit made of a number of connected
bones [see bak ~, nek ~, tail ~, etc.].

OED

HELM
BT
HELM, es; m. I. a HELM, helmet :-- Leðer helm galea: īren helm cassis, Ælfc. Gl. 51; Som. 66, 13, 14;
Wrt. Voc. 35, 3, 4. Helmes camb crista: helmes bȳge conus, 53; Som. 66, 76, 77; Wrt. Voc. 36, 2, 3. Se
hwīta, hearda helm, Beo. Th. 2900, 4502; B. 1448, 2255. II. a crown, the top, overshadowing foliage of
trees :-- Helm corona, Wrt. Voc. 64, 39. Mid þyrnenum helme his heāfod be-fēngon encircled his head
with a crown of thorns, Homl. Th. ii. 252, 26; Mk. Skt. 15, 17. Ful oft unc holt wrugon wudubeāma helm
full oft the wood covered us the shady top of the forest trees, Exon. 129 a; Th. 496, 2; Rä. 85, 8. Ðæt se
stemn and se helm mōte ðȳ fæstor and ðȳ leng standon that the stem and top may stand the foster and
longer, Bt. 34, 10; Fox 148, 33: Fox 150, 3. Hire hyrdeman sume ās āstāh and his orf læswode mid
treowenum helme her herdsman had ascended an oak and was feeding his cattle with its woody crown,
Homl. Th. ii. 150, 31. Forðæm se þorn ðære gītsunga ne wyrþ forsearod on ðæm helme gif se wyrttruma
ne biþ færcorfen oððe forbærned æt ðæm stemne si enim radix culpæ in ipsa effusione non exuritur,
numquam per ramos exuberans avaritiæ spina siccatur, Past. 45, 3; Swt. 341, l0: Runic pm. 18; Kmbl.
342, 31; Hick, Thes. i. 135. III. a covering [in this sense the word is preserved in some dialects. Thus in
Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Glossaries, English Dial. Soc. vols. ii. v. vi, helm, a hovel, an open shed for
cattle, a shed built on posts] :-- Wǣges helm [holm?] the covering made by the wave, the sea, Elen. Kmbl.
459; El. 230. Under lyfte helm under the air's covering, Exon. 102 a; Th. 386, 19; Rä. 4, 64. Helme
gedȳgled concealed with a covering, 1226; Th. 470, 10; Hy. 11, 33. IV. in poetry the word is applied to
persons, thus God and Christ are spoken of as æþelinga, hæleþa, hāligra, duguþa, dryhtfolca, engla,
grāsta, heofona, heofonrīces, wuldres helm and helm wera, ælwihta. Similar phrases occur in speaking of
earthly rulers, æþelinga, heriga, lidmanna, wedra, weoruda helm and helm Scyldinga, Scylfinga. [Goth.
hilms a helmet: O. Sax. helm: Icel. hjālmr: O. H. Ger. helm, galea, cassis: Ger. helm.] DER. bān-, grīm-,
gūþ-, hæleþ-, heaþu-, heoloþ-, lyft-, mist-, niht-, sceadu-, sund-, wæter-helm.

BTs
helm. Add: I. a covering for the head. (l) a helmet :-- Helm galea, Wrt. Voc. i. 84, 10: cassium, ii. 103,
38: 14, 5: 129, 24. Þǣr wæs helm monig, eald and ōmig, B. 2762. Helm sceal cēnum, On. Ex. 205. Wæs
of þǣm hrōran helm and byrne ālȳsed, B. 1629. Wæs his helm þyrl, Fin. 45. Helmes cassidis, Wrt. Voc. ii
103, 34: 13, 61: 129, 25 : An. Ox. 2, 417. Ymb þæs helmes hrōf heāfodbeorge wīrum bewunden wāl an
ūtan heōld, B 1032. Ecg sceal wið helme hilde gebīdan, Gn. C. 16. Sweord swīn oter helme ecgum dyhtig
andweard scireð, B. 1286. Seō ecg helm oft gescær, 1526: 2973. Þonne rond and hand on herefelda helm
ealgodon, An. 10. Mōdcræftig smið gewyrced tō wera hilde helm oððe hupseax, Crii. 64. Helmas cassida,
Wrt. Voc. ii. 14, Fōron tō gefeohte hæleð under helmum, Jud. 203. Hæleð . . . helmum þeahte, Gen. 1089.
Ād helmum behong. n, hilde-bordum beorhtum byrnum, B. 3139. ¶ epithets of the helmet are brūn, Jud.
318 : brūn-fāh, B. 2615 : entisc, B. 2979: gold-fāh, B. 2811: heard, B. 2255 : heaþo-steāp, B. 1245 : 2153 :
hefig, Hml. Th. ii. 502. 12 : hwīt, B. 1448 : scīr, Jud. 193. (l a) where the helm has a technical
significance :-- Eorles heregeata syndon . . . feōwer helmas and feōwer byrnan . . . Cyninges þegenes . . .
helm mid byrnan, Ll. Th. i. 414, 4-11. Of viii hīdum helm and byrnan, Chr. 1008; P. 138, 6. Þeān ceorlisc
geþeō  hē hæbbe helm and byrnan . . . gif hē  land nafað hē bið ceorl swā þeāh, Ll. Th. i. 188, 8. (2) a
crown, diadem :-- Sitt þonne swegles brytta on heāhsetle helme beweorðod (gewurþod, Wlfst. 137, 17),
Dōm. L. 118. Cōm se deōfol mid purpuran gescrȳd and mid helme (mid gyldenum cynehelme, Hml. S. 31,
752) geglengd, Hml. Th. ii. 512, 24. Mid helme (cynehelme, Hml. S. 31, 764), 30. Aman gelǣdde
Mardocheum, mid helme (cf. cynehelm diadema 232) gescrȳdne, Hml. A. 99, 242. Ðurh ðone ðyrnenan
helm on ðone Hǣlend beslagen, Hml. Th. ii. 254, 10. II. the top, crown of a thing, mostly of the foliage of
a tree or plant. v. helm-bǣre, helmiht :-- Geþūf fīcbeām vel helm frondea ficus, Wrt. Voc ii. 151, 16.
Coppe helmes (sub) cono (sublimi) verticis. l. capitis (arboris), An. Ox. 1564 Mid wexendum helme
florenti fronde, 1132. Ic sæt innan bearwe min helme beþeht, Dōm. L. 2. Helm conum, -Wrt. Voc. ii. 129,
24. Geþūfe beāmas vel helmas frondea robora, Wrt. Voc. ii. 151, 13. Huni-bǣrum clǣfran helmum
melligeris caltarum frondibus, An. Ox. 95: 924. III. cover, concealment :-- Nō heō on helm losað, ne on
foldan fæðm, ne on fyrgenholt, ne on gyfenes grund, gā þǣr heō wille she will not escape into
concealment, neither into earth's bosom, nor into the mountain wood, nor into ocean's depths, go where
she will, B. 1392. III a. a covering :-- Helme porticulo (cf. porticulus minor porticus seu aedicula quae
stpulcris mortuorum superstruebatur, Migne. But porticulus in the passage glossed, Aid. 3, 3, is the
hammer used in giving signals to rowers), An Ox. 33. Helme tiro (the line to which the gloss belongs is :
Sed tyro infracta tectus testudine Christi, Ald. 210, 12 ; helme seems to belong to testudine], Wrt. Voc. ii.
97, 7. v. cyne-, īsern-, leþer-, wuldor-helm.
CH

MED

(a) A helmet; casten up ~, to raise the visor of a helmet; under ~, wearing a helmet; ~ ston, ?
coping stone of a roof; (b) the crown of thorns; (c) fig. ~ of hele, ~ of hope, etc.; (d) a warrior; (e)
a sign of an inn or shop; also a representation of a helmet in a heraldic device; (f) ~ bereres,
soldiers' servants, batmen.

(a)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   21141:  Halm [Otho: helm] he set on hafde.  c1275(?
a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   26050:  Arður bræid he3e his sceld buuen his hælme [Otho:
healme].  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   28549:  Luken sweord longe, leiden o þe helmen
[Otho: healmes].  ?a1300 Jacob & J.(Bod 652)   408:  Mid helm & mid brunie, mid swerdes
outdrawe.  c1330(?c1300) Amis (Auch)   1244:  Þai schred þat kni3t Wiþ helme & plate & brini
bri3t.  (1379) Will York in Sur.Soc.4   107:  Cum cotearmour, helme, scuto, et uno
gladio.  (c1390) Chaucer CT.Th.(Manly-Rickert)   B.2067:  His swerdes shethe of yuory, His
helm of latoun bright.  (1397) Inquis.Miscel.(PRO)   6.108:  [4] helmes, [2] ketelhattes.  c1400(?
c1390) Gawain (Nero A.10)   268:  I haue a hauberghe at home & a helme boþe.  (1424)
*Mun.B.Bridgewater   1427:  For helme stonys xx d.  a1425(a1382) WBible(1) (Corp-O 4)   1
Kings 17.5:  A stelyn helm [WB(2): basynet; L cassis] vpon his heed.  (1440) PParv.(Hrl 221)  
235:  Helme of armure: Galea.  a1450(1408) *Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)   38b:  Þis ordinaunce was
cleped þe greet armature, þe whiche had helmes, habergeons and bristplates, legharneys,
scheldes, grete swerdes..and also litel swerdes.  a1450(c1410) Lovel. Grail (Corp-C 80)  
13.131:  Toward kyng Eualach he prekede Anon, And vp his helm there he Caste.  (a1470)
Malory Wks.(Win-C)   51/10:  He..raced of hys helme, and wolde have smytten off hys
hede.  a1475(?a1430) Lydg. Pilgr.(Vit C.13)   7608:  Out off hyr tresour ek she ffette An Elm, A
Gorger, a Targette.  a1500(?c1450) Merlin (Cmb Ff.3.11)   335:  The kynge Ban be-gan to laugh
vndir his helme.  a1500 Discip.Cler.(Wor F.172)   49:  He shall yeve the a cheese to the gretnes
of an helm made.  

(b)  a1225(?OE) Trin.Hom.(Trin-C B.14.52)   205:  He..hadde þornene helm uppen his holi

hafde.  a1225(?OE) Trin.Hom.(Trin-C B.14.52)   207:  Þenne akeð his heorte..for his sinnes
alse sholde his heued 3if he hadde þer-uppe þornene helm.  c1390 Disp.Virg.& Cross (Vrn)  
313:  Þorw-out his helm, þe harde hat, Þe þornes in-to his flesch gan crepe.  

(c)  a1225(?OE) Trin.Hom.(Trin-C B.14.52)   193:  Habbeð rihte bileue to brunie and hope to

helme.  c1350 Ayenb.App.(Arun 57)   265/27:  Nymeþ þane helm of helþe, and þe holy gostes
zuord.  (a1382) WBible(1) (Dc 369(1))   Wisd.5.19:  He shal take to for the helm [WB(2):
basynet; L galea] certein dom.  a1425(a1400) Paul.Epist.(Corp-C 32)   Eph.6.17:  Take 3ee þe
helm of hele, and þe swerd of þe spyryt.  c1425 *Wycl.Concord.(Roy 17.B.1)   67b:  Helme of
helþe, eph. sixte cap. helme of hope, firste pistle to tessol. fifþe cap.  c1475(?c1400) Wycl.Apol.
(Dub 245)   98:  Þe helm of hel and þe swerd of þe Spirit.  

(d)  a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)   9899:  Hors & harneys he dide bryng,
ffyftene þousand helmes clers.  ?a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.(1) (LdMisc 656)   609:  An hundred
þousand helmes of þe heþen syde Wer fey fallen in þe felde.  c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm
44)   5498:  Ser Bedwyn þe bald with many bri3t helmes.  (a1470) Malory Wks.(Win-C)  
190/4:  Thus many I shall brynge with me: twenty thousand helmys in haubirkes attyred.  

(e)  (1415) Reg.Chichele in Cant.Yk.S.42 (Lamb 69)   48:  Þe holme and þe armes of John
Cheyne squier stondynge in a 3ok with iij corteyns.  (1424) Doc.Brewer in
Bk.Lond.E.  183/1333:  Thomas Boteler, atte helme yn Cornhill, hath j kilderkyn nought
morken.  

(f)  a1450(1408) *Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)   61a:  Of þilke tymber bereres and helmbereres [L
galiarios] were chosen out of þe companye þe wisest and ablest men.  

OED
helm, n.1

(hɛlm)

Forms: 1– helm; also 3 hælm, healm, 4–7 helme, 6 healme.

[Com. Teut.: OE. helm str. masc. = OFris., OS. (LG., MDu., Du.), OHG. (MHG., Ger.) helm,
ON. hjalmr (Sw., Da. hjelm), Goth. hilms:—OTeut. *helmo-z:—pre-Teut. *kelmo-s, f. root kel-
to cover, conceal (see hele v.). OF. helme (mod.F. heaume) masc., It. elmo, Sp. yelmo, are from
OHG. Senses 7 and 8 are prob. from Norse.]

I. 1.I.1 That part of the armour which covers the head; a helmet. Now poet. and arch.

   c 725 Corpus Gloss. 422 Cassium, helm.    c 1000 Ælfric Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 143/27 Crista,
helmes camb.    a 1175 Cott. Hom. 243 Þa beoð sceold helm and brenie.    c 1205 Lay. 25813
Hælm [c 1275 healm] an his hafde.    c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints, Cristofore 549 Þane gert þe kinge
ane helme tak.    1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 65 b/2 A helme of brasse on his heed.    a 1533 Ld.
Berners Huon liv. 182 There was brought him a good harneis, helme, sheld, & spere.    1667
Milton P.L. vi. 840 O're Shields and Helmes, and helmed heads he rode.    1715–20 Pope Iliad v.
5 High on his helm celestial lightnings play.    1870 Morris Earthly Par. II. iii. 345 Methought I
had a helm upon my head Wrought all of gold.
fig.    c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 193 Habbeð rihte bileue to brunie, and hope to helme.    1382
Wyclif Isa. lix. 17 The helm of helthe in his hed.

b.I.1.b Her. = helmet 2.

   1864 Boutell Her. Hist. & Pop. xiv. 165 A large helm surmounted by the lion crest.

†2.I.2 transf. Put for a man in armour. Obs.

   a 1400–50 Alexander 5498 Ser Bedwyn þe bald with many briȝt helmes.    1470–85 Malory
Arthur vi. vi, The kyng of Northgaly's with eyght score helmes.    1548 Hall Chron., Hen. V, 47
In the Vaward wer eight thousande Healmes of Knightes and Esquiers and foure thousande
Archers.

†3.I.3 Christ's crown of thorns. Obs.

   c 1000 Ælfric Hom. II. 252 Mid þyrnenum helme his heafod befengon.    c 1175 Lamb. Hom.
147 Ure helende‥hefde uppen his hefde þornene helm.    a 1400 Leg. Rood (1871) 142 Þorw-out
his helm þe harde hat Þe þornes in-to his flesch gan crepe.

II. 4.II.4 The crown, top, or summit of anything; in OE. esp. the leafy top of a tree. Obs. exc. dial.

   c 888 K. Ælfred Boeth. xxxiv. §10 He onginþ of ðam wyrtrumum and swa upweardes grewþ‥
oþ ðone helm.    c 1000 Ælfric Hom. II. 150 His orf læswode mid treowenum helme.    a 1100
Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 243/33 Frondea robora, ᴁebufe beamas uel helmas.    1893 Northumbld.
Gloss., Helm, the top (crest) or head of a thing. ‘Helm o' the hill’‥a considerable eminence on
the old post road a few miles south of Felton.

†5.II.5 The head or cap of an alembic or retort.

   1594 Plat Jewell-ho. ii. 5 Those glasses which they call bodies‥fitted to their helmes.    1610
B. Jonson Alch. ii. i, She'll mount you up, like quick-silver Over the helm.    1686 Plot
Staffordsh. 102 That its oil or sulphur came over the Helm upon the first heat.    1718 J.
Chamberlayne Relig. Philos. (1730) II. xviii. §7 Distil it with a glowing Iron Pot, upon which
there is an Iron Helm or Head.

III.III †6.III.6 A covering. (Only in OE.) Obs.

   a 1000 Riddles iv. 64 (Gr.) Under lyfte helm.

7.III.7 A roofed shelter for cattle, etc.; a shed. north.

   1501 Searcher's Verdicts in Surtees Misc. (1888) 22 For his kid helme upon þe tenement or
ground.    1641 Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 58 The Greate Helme in the Staggarth helde 43
[loades], the Helme in the Foregarth helde 23.    1674–91 Ray N.C. Words 36 An Helm, a Hovel.
1855 Robinson Whitby Gloss., Helm, a hovel, an open shed for cattle in a field.    1863 Mrs.
Toogood Yorksh. Dial., Helm, a cart or cattle shed.
8.III.8 (Also helm-cloud.) The local name in Cumberland and Westmorland of a cloud which
forms over a mountain top before or during a storm; esp. that which accompanies the helm-wind
(also occas. called the helm), a violent wind which in certain circumstances rushes down the
escarpment of the Pennines near Cross Fell, when a helm-cloud lies over the summit. helm bar, a
roll of cloud suspended in the air to the leeward of the helm-cloud.

   1777 Nicolson & Burn Hist. Westm. & Cumb. I. 7 It is called a Helm-wind.    Ibid., A rolling
cloud‥hovers over the mountain tops‥When this cloud appears, the country people say the
helm is up‥This helm‥continues in its station, although a violent roaring hurricane comes
tumbling down the mountain.    1787 J. Clarke Surv. Lakes Introd. xl, A black streak of cloud‥
continually fed from the white one, which is the real Helm: this is called the Helm-bar, from its
being supposed to bar or obstruct the winds that burst upon the vallies beneath as soon as it
wholly vanishes.    Ibid., Such is the Helm-Wind generated in that enormous cloud, which, like a
helmet, covers the summit of Cross-fell.    1801 Coleridge Poems II. 159 Ancient Skiddaw‥
Thus spake from out his helm of cloud.    1885 Nature 23/1 Whenever the helm-wind was
blowing, there was an easterly wind.    1886 Jrnl. R. Meteor. Soc. 2 On certain occasions, when
the wind is from some Easterly point, the Helm suddenly forms‥Small portions of thin vaporous
clouds are seen travelling from the Helm Cloud to the Bar.    1888 Encycl. Brit. XXIV. 515/2
Here for weeks at a time prevails a kind of cyclone, revolving on a horizontal axis parallel to the
escarpment,—the ‘helm-wind’.    1888–9 J. G. Goodchild in Trans. Cumb. & Westm. Assoc.
XIV. 44 The Helm Wind descends with greatest force in the neighbourhood of the highest
elevation of the Escarpment, being strongest along a zone extending a few miles on each side of
Cross Fell, and gradually diminishing in force in proportion to the distance on either side.

IV. 9.IV.9 attrib. and Comb., as helm-bearing, helm-decked, helm-mover; helm bar, helm-cloud,
helm-wind (see sense 8); helm-guard, ‘a chain attaching the helm to the girdle or to the
mammelière’ (Cent. Dict.).

   a 1100 Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 243/40 Frondigeris coronis, helmberendum wuldorbeaᴁum.    c 

1611 Chapman Iliad ii. 725 Helm-deck'd Hector.    Ibid. vi. 277 The great helm⁓mover thus
received the authoress of his kind.

beadu-grīma
BT
beado-grīma, -grīmma, an; m. A war-mask, helmet; bellica larva, cassis :-- Ða ðe beadogrīmman bȳwan
sceoldon those who should prepare the war-helmet, Beo. Th. 4506; B. 2257. v. beadu-grīma.

beadu-grīma, an; m. A war-mask, helmet. v. beado-grīma.

BTs

CH

MED

OED
† ˈbead-hook Obs.

Also 7 beedhook.

[Chiefly in Chapman: can he have formed it from OE. {beadu} battle, war? Cf. OE. beadu
wæpen weapon of battle, etc.]

? A kind of boat hook.

   1600 Chapman Iliad xv. 356 The Greeks with bead-hooks fought.    1614 ― Odyss. ix. 651 A
bead-hook then‥I snatch'd up.    1631 ― Cæsar & P. Plays 1873 III. 180 Yet beare halfe pikes
or bead-hookes.    1614 Raleigh Hist. World II. viii. iii. §18. 474 Corne, Iron, Canuas for Sailes,
Axes, Beede-hookes, Hand-milles.

beadu
BT
beadu; gen. beaduwe; f. Battle, war, etc. Andr. Kmbl. 1963; An. 984. v. beado and the following
compounds.

BTs

CH
MED

OED

grima
BT
grīma, an; m. I. a mask, visor, helmet :-- Gylden grīma a golden helm, Elen. Kmbl. 249; El. 125, Grīma a
mask, Gl. Mett. 504. He mīne sāwle swylce gehealde wið ehtendra egsan grīman ut salvam faceret a
persequentibus animam meam, Ps. Th. 108, 30. [Icel. grīma a sort of hood or cowl.] See Grmm. D. M.
218-9. DER. beadu-, here-grīma. II. a spectre; larva :-- Mec mæg grīma abrēgan a spectre can terrify me,
Exon. 1l0 b; Th. 423, 7; Rä. 41, 17. v. eges-grīma in Appendix.

BTS
grīma. Add: I. a visor, mask :-- Grīma mascus, Wrt. Voc. ii. 113, 54: 55, 46. II. a spectre, goblin,
nightmare :-- Grīma masca (masca striga; nocturna imago quae animam dormientis perturbat; larva,
Migne), Wrt. Voc. ii. 113, 53: 55, 48: larbula, 70, 42. Grīma scina (l. scena), Txts. 94, 904: scino, nitatio,
98, 953. See next word.

CH

MED

[Cp. OE grim adj. & MDu. grimme, OHG grimm n.]

(a) Fierceness; (b) fury, anger, hatred; o ~, angrily; taken to ~, to be angered, take offense; (c)
excitement, agitation; (d) terrible creature(s.

OED
grīmhelm
BT

BTs

CH

MED

OED

guþhelm
BT
gūþ-helm, es; m. A helm, Beo. Th. 4967; B. 2487.

BTs

CH

MED

OED

guþ
hēafodbeorg
BT

BTs

CH
MED

OED

hēafod
BT
heāfod; gen. heāfdes; dat. heāfde; pl. heāfdu [v. Ælfc. Gr. 15; Som. 18, 21-25] HEAD, chief, source, 'the
commencing point, or the highest point, of a stream, of a field, hill, etc. In reference to running water, the
head is exactly converse to the gemȳðe or mouths. In the Saxon charters the word is of frequent
occurrence, and, as it seems, generally to denote rising grounds. It is hardly distinguishable from the
compound words and-heāfod, on-heāfod; Cod. Dipl. Kmbl, iii. xxix :-- Ðis forweard heāfod hæc frons,
Ælfc. Gr. 9, 39; Som. 12, 60: Wrt. Voc. 70, 28: Homl. Th. ii. 266, 11. Æfteweard hæfod occiput vel
postea: ofer healf heāfod sinciput, Ælfc. Gl. 69; Som. 70, 35, 36; Wrt. Voc. 42, 43, 44. Healf heāfod hoc
sinciput, Ælfc. Gr. 9, 78; Som. 14, 24. Cūþ is ðæt se āwyrgda gāst is heāfod ealra unrihtwīsra dǣda,
swylce unrihtwīse syndon deōfles leomo it is known that the accursed spirit is the source of all
unrighteous deeds, as also unrighteous men are members of the devil, Blickl. Homl. 33, 7. Hine ðe wæs
ǣrur heāfod tō ðam unrǣde the man that had before been the author of that mischief, Chr. 1087; Erl. 225,
10. Heāfod ealra heāhgesceafta the chief of all exalted creatures, Cd. 1; Th. i. 7; Gen. 4: Hy. 7, 62; Hy.
Grn. ii. 287, 62. Hē getimbrede ða burg Babylonie tō ðon ðæt heō wǣre heāfod ealra Asiria Babyloniam
urbem instauravit, caputque regni Assyrii ut esset instituit, Ors. 2, 1; Swt. 60, 14. Stæfes heāfud apicem,
Lk. Skt. Lind. 16, 17. Wið healfes, heāfdes ece for megrim, L. M. 1, 1; Lchdm. ii. 20, 14, 17, 21. Þolige hē
heāfdes let him lose his head, L. Edg. S. 11; Th. i. 276, 13. His heāfdes segl his head's sun [the eye],
Andr. Kmbl. 100; An. 50. His eāgan hālge heāfdes gimmas his eyes, his head's holy gems, Exon. 51 b; Th.
180, 7; Gū. 1276. Hāt mē heāfde beceorfan order my head to be cut off, Blickl. Homl. 183, 16. Wið
tōbrocenum heāfde for a broken head, L. M. 1, 1; Lchdm. ii. 22, 10. On ðam heāfde foran on the
forehead, 2, 64; Lchdm. ii. 288, 22: 65; Lchdm. ii. 290, 23. His heāfod forweard mid ðære hālgan rōde
tācne gewǣpnige let him arm his head in front with the sign of the holy rood, L. E. I. 29; Th. ii. 426, 8. Wē
sceolon fyligan ūrum Heāfde and faran fram deōfle tō Criste we ought to follow our Head, and pass from
the devil to Christ, Homl. Th. ii. 282, 20. Ic ðē gesette eallum Israhēlum tō heāfde caput te constitui in
tribubus Israel, Past. 17, 4; Swt. 113, 10. Ðū settest ūs mænige men ofer heāfod imposuisti homines super
capita nostra, Ps. Th. 65, 10. Hēr Offa hēt Æþelbryhte ðæt heāfod ofāsleān in this year Offa ordered
Ethelbert's head to be struck off, Chr. 792; Erl. 58, 2. Būton hē healde iii niht hȳde and heāfod unless he
keep the hide and head three nights, L. Eth. iii. 9; Th. i. 296, 18. Fare seō buruhwaru sylf tō and begyte ða
banan cuce oððe deāde heora nȳhstan māgas, heāfod wið heāfde let the burghers themselves go and get
the murderers, living or dead, or their nearest kinsmen, head for head, ii. 6; Th. i. 286, 32. Æt ðam ōðran
cyrre ne sȳ ðǣr nān ōðer bōt būtan ðæt heāfod the second time let there be no other reparation than the
head, i. 1, 2; Th. i. 282, 2, 23. Heāfdas feōnda capita inimicorum suorum, Ps. Th. 67, 21. Hie heora heāfdu
slōgan on ða wagas they struck their heads against the walls, Blickl. Homl. 151, 5. Hȳ habbaþ hunda
heāfda they have dogs' heads, Nar. 34, 32. Ða heāfda wǣran ofācorfena the heads were cut off, Ors. 4, 1;
Bos. 79, 7. Nim ðes leāces heāfda take the heads of this leek, Lchdm. i. 376, 3. Heāfdu, L. M. 2, 32;
Lchdm. ii. 234, 20. Of Godes half and ealre hādode heāfde on behalf of God and of all persons in orders,
Chr. 675; Erl. 37, 25: 963; Erl. 123, 15. Swā swā heō on dæg dēþ bufan ūrum heāfdum as by day it does
above our heads, Lchdm, iii. 234, 25. Ðone stān ðe æt his heāfdum læg the stone that lay at his head, Past.
16, 3; Swt. 101, 16. Ðā cōman ðyder tu wild deōr and heōldan ðone līchoman ōðer æt ðǣm heāfðum ōðer
æt ðǣm fōtum then came thither two wild beasts and guarded the body, one at the head, the other at the
feet, Shrn. 83, 25: Rood Kmbl. 126; Kr. 63. Heāfdan, Blickl. Homl. 145, 26. [Laym. heaved, hæfed: Orm.
hæfedd: A. R. heaved: Piers P. Chauc. Wick. hed, heed. The cognate dialects seem to offer two forms,
differing in the root vowel, each of which may be represented in the English. Thus heāfod may compare
with Goth. haubiþ: O. Sax. hōƀid: O. H. Ger. haupit, houbit; while hæfod, hafud may compare with Icel.
höfuð; v. Cl. and Vig. Dict. s. v.] @bt_b0514

BTs
heāfod. Add: A head :-- Heāfod caput, heāfud cephal, Wrt. Voc. ii. 16, 40, 41. I. the head of a living
creature. (1) of a human being :-- Brōht wæs heāfud (-od, L. ) his on disce, Mt. R. 14, 11. Þeāh him mon
sleā mid sweorde wiþ þæs heāfdes though one strike at his head with a sword, Bl. H. 47, 14. Wið ðæs
heāfodes sāre, Lch. i. 286, 22. Him ne hangað nacod sweord ofer þām heāfde (pendentis supra verticem
gladii terror), Bt. 29, 1; F. 102, 27. Hē slōg mid his heāfde on þone wāg caput pariete collidens, Ors. 5,
15; S. 250, 12.  sigbēg gesetton hǣfde (on heōfod, R. ) his coronam inposuerunt capiti eius, Jn. L. 19, 2.
Hē Iōhannes bibeād heāfde biheāwan, Jul. 295 : Met. 1. 43. Heāfde beneōtan, Ap. 46: Jul. 604. Ic heāfde
forceart Grendeles mōdor, B. 2138. On ðæt heāfud (-od, v. l.), Past. 261, 14. Tō sācerdan heāfod āhyldan,
Ll. Th. i. 334, 33. Þweh mīn heāfod (heāfut, L., heōfod, R. ), Jn. 13, 9. Hnigon mid heāfdum him tōgeānes,
Gen. 237 : 742. Heora heāfda of āceorfan, Ors. 2, 3 ; S. 68, 12. Hī wecgað heora heāfdu, Ps. Th. 21, 6.
Heāfda, Mt. L. 27, 39. (1 a) where the head is used in measurement :-- Dura  mannes heāfod ge þā
sculdro magan in, Bl. H. 127, 9. Se hrōf on sumre stōwe wæs  man mid his handa neālīce gerǣcan
mihte, in sumre eāþelīce mid heāfde gehrīnan, 207, 23 : Hml. Th. i. 508, 19. (2) of an animal :-- Ðæs īles
heafud (-od, v. l.), Past. 241, 16. Scēpes heāfod, Bl. H. 183, 22. Slōg hē hors mid his sweorde  him
wand þæt heāfod of, Ors. 5, 2 ; S. 216, 24. Ðā heāfudu (heāfdu, v. l.), Past. 105, 5. Hī hine oftorfodon mid
hrȳðera heāfdum, Chr. 1012; P. 142, 23. Ceruerus sceolde habban @bt_d0513 þriō heāfdu, Bt. 35, 6; F.
168, 17. II. the head (1) as the seat of thought :-- Ðæt heāfod sceal wīsian ðǣm fōtum, Past. 131, 24.
Hond sceal heōfod in wyrcan, Gn. Ex. 68. (2) as part essential to life, cf. heāfod-ǣ. -- Ne sȳ nān ōðer bōt
būtan  heāfod (cf. forgā þȳfðe be his feōre, 210, 3), Ll. Th. i. 282, 2, 23. Sȳ hē þeōf, and þolige heāfdes,
276, 13. For þon ðīn ēþel (wyrd ?) hit swā be þīnum heāfde and fōre hafað ārǣded fata ita de tuo capite
statuerunt, Nar. 29, 13. III. the head in reference to hair :-- Eōwres heafudes loccas, Mt. 10, 30. Heāfdes
(heōfdes, R.), Lk. 12, 7. Loc of heāfde, An. 1425. Of heōfde iōwrum, Lk. R. 21, 18.  hiē eal hiera
heāfod besceāren, Ors. 4, 11; S. 204, 8. Ða sācerdas ne scoldon nō hiera heāfdu scieran mid scierseaxum,
Past. 139, 12. IV. (1) in enumeration, as in per head :-- Æt heāfde peninc, Wlfst. 170, 20. (2) in
numbering cattle :-- Mid xii heāfdon sceāpa, Cht. Th. 641, 1. V. the extremity of a thing :-- Stæfes heāfod
apex, Mt. L. 5, 18. Heāfod (of a key), Rä. 62, 5. Þurh his (a battering-ram) heāfdes mægen, 54, 9. V a. the
rounded part of a plant :-- xii hund heāfda (cf. capitum (heads of garlic) milia multa, Prehn, p. 255), Rä.
83, 4. Genim gārleāces þreō heāfdu, Lch. ii. 234, 20. VI. the top of a building :-- Þæt þū heāfod siē healle
mǣrre and gesomnige sīde weallas fæste gefōge, Cri. 4. Se stān ys geworden tō þǣre hyrnan heāfde (in
heafut, L., heāfod, R.), Mt. 21, 42. VII. of places. (1) a summit, eminence :-- Of hēfdes welle on nunnene
line; of nunnene linche on litiges hēuede ; of litiges hēuede anlang dīche, C. D. iii. 420, 10-12. Of ðēre
dūne on beran heāfde ; of beran heāfde, 376, 7. Of ðām stāne tō ðām heāfde; big ðām heāfde, 384, 16. On
ðam beorge ðat hit sticað on cheotoles heāfde, 434, 14. Tō dūnan heāfde; ðæt tō Hunes cnolle, v. 313, 13.
Æt Biēdan heāfde, Chr. 675 ; P. 34, 28. (2) the upper end of that which is, or is thought of as, sloping. (a)
of land. Cf. æt ðas akeres ūpende, C. D. iii. 434, 2. In pl. the word seems often equivalent to andheāfdu, q.
v. :-- Andlang cumbes tō ðæs cumbes heāfde, 434, 35 : ii. 29, 3. Æt ðæs croftes heāfod, iii. 37, 23. On þæs
hlinces heāfod, v. 217, 21 : iii. 420, 27. On mōres heāfod, C. D. B. iii. 336, 19. On hanslædes heāfdan . . .
on catedenes heāfdan, C. D. iii. 380, 26-29. Tō ceōlan heāfdan, 462, 21. Be ðǣra æcera heāfdan, vi. 79, 12
: iii. 420, 16. Be heāfdan, 444, 14. Andlang fyrh tō ðon heāfdon, 437, 22. Of ðǣre fyrh ā be þǣm heāfdan,
Cht. E. 208, 33, 34. Of þām heāfodon andlang fūra . . . Ondlong weges oþ þā heāfdo, C. D. iii. 436, 16-27.
(b) of water :-- Of horspōles heāuede . . . on horspōles heāued, C. D. iii. 445, 25-35. In ðes pulles heāfod,
382, 10. On þæs fennes heāfod, C. D. B. iii. 517, 30. On seohteres heāfod, 624, 20. (3) head, as in bed's
head, the part of a couch where a person's head would rest :-- Sce UNCERTAIN Adrianes hand heō āsette
æt hire heāfdum on hire ræste, Shrn. 59, 35. Setton him tō heāfdum hilderandas, B. 1242. VIII. head as in
fountain-head, source. (1) literal :-- Andlang weges tō mearcbrōces heāfde, C. D. iii. 445, 4. On beueres
brōces heāfod, v. 48, 8. On ðæs wælles heāfod, ii. 28, 34 : 29, 4. On secgwælles heāfod, 7. On wulfwælles
heāfod, 13. (2) figurative :-- Wyrd . . ., weāna wyrtwela, wōpes heāfod, Sal. 444. Of edwittes ȳða
heāfdum, 29. IX. the beginning of a period of time :-- Heāfdes fæstenes capitis ieiunii, Angl. xiii. 404,
566. Fram heāfde fæstenes, 563. Fram heāfde lenctenes oþ tō gereorde Drihtnes a capite quadragesimę
usque ad cenam Domini, 407, 596. X. the figure-head of a ship :-- Harold his scipes heāfod þām kynge
brōhte, Chr. 1063; P. 191, 16. XI. used of persons. (1) one to whom others are subordinate, a chief, leader
:-- Israhēla folc geceās Ionatham, biddende  hē wǣre heora heāfod and heretoga wið þā hǣþenan
þeōda ; and hē fēng ðā tō ealdordōme swā swā hī bǣdon, Hml. S. 25, 717. Þone arcb UNCERTAIN . . . sē
þe ǣr wæs Angelcynnes heāfod and Xpendōmes, UNCERTAIN Chr. 1011; P. 142, 5. Þū mē gesettest
ðeōdum tō heāfde constitues me in caput gentium, Ps. Th. 17, 41. Hwæt āwriten is be hira heāfde and be
hiera lāreōwe, ðæt is deōful quod de eorum capite scriptum est, Past. 301, 6. Ðæt hālige heāfoð (-od, v. l.)
ðǣre hālgan gesomnunge, ðæt is Dryhten, 101, 22. (2) one who is more intelligent than others, who can
instruct others :-- Is ðearf ðæt ðæt dūst ðisse eorðlican giēmenne ne āðīsðrige ðæt eāge ðæs recceres, for
ðǣm ealle ðā ðe ofer ōðre biōð, biōð heāfda (-u, v. l.) ðǣra ðe ðǣrunder biōð, and ðæt heāfod sceal wīsian
ðǣm fōtum, Past. 131, 23. XII. used of places, a capital, chief town :-- Constantinopolim is nū  hēhste
cynesetl and heāfod ealles eāstrīces, Ors. 3, 7 ; S. 116, 13. Babilonia þe wæs Persa rīces heāfod, Wlfst.
194, 11. XIII. phrases. (1) with prep. ofer. (a) local, over ( one's) head, aloft :-- Hī him āsetton segen heāh
ofer heāfod, B. 48. Āscān leōht ofer hieora heāfod, Bl. H. 249, 2. (b) with the idea of protection, influence,
&c.:-- Þū hand þīne mē ofer heāfod holde gesettest posuisti super me manum tuam, Ps. Th. 138, 3. Þā þe
him Godes egsa hleonað ofer heāfdum, Gū. 44. (2) with another noun :-- Hē tōbærst mid wundum from
ðām heāfde oð ðā fēt, Shrn. 132, 9. (3) with a verb. (a) heāfod brecan to destroy, crush an enemy :--
Heāfod hē gebreceð hæleða meniges, Ps. Th. 109, 7. (b) heāfod (ā)hebban. (α) to take courage, regain
cheerfulness or confidence :-- Eōure heāfdu (heōfodo, R.) ūp āhebbaþ; for þām þe eōwer ālȳsednes
geneālǣcð, Lk. 21, 28. (β) to feel proud or elated :-- Hī beōð þȳ dǣdfromran, and for ðon hiora heāfod
hebbað, Ps. Th. 109, 8. (γ) to be defiant :-- Hī heora heāfod wið þē hōfan, Ps. Th. 82, 2. (c) heāfod niman
to accept as a slave. Cf. Icel. fœra einum höfuð sitt to surrender oneself to an enemy, and see Grmm. R.
A. pp. 146-7, 327-8 :-- Ealle þā men þe heō nam heora heāfod for hyra mete on þām yflum dagum, Cht.
Th. 621, 9. [Goth. haubif: O. Frs. hāved: O. Sax. hōbið: O. H. Ger. houbit: Icel. haufuð, (later) hǫfuð.] v.
foran-, fore- (for-), healf-, ofer-, oferhealf-, sūþ-, ūp-heāfod; and-heāfdu; wulf-heāfod-treōw.

CH

MED

1a.

(a) A human or animal head; (b) a representation of a head in heraldry, carving, painting, etc.; (c)
of a bed or grave: the end at which the head lies; shete for the ~ = ~ shete; (d) hair, hairstyle,
coiffure; (e) head covering, helmet; (f) of a hart or deer: the antlers; at (of) the first ~, young,
when the antlers first appear.

OED

beorg
BT
beorg, berg a protection, refuge; præsidium, refugium. DER. heāfod beorg, ge-beorg, scūr-beorg : cin-
berg.

BTs
beorg protection. Add: v. bān-, breōst-, heals-beorg.

CH

MED

OED

† bergh, n. Obs.

[OE. {beorᴁ}, beorh ‘protection, shelter,’ only in compounds as scúr-beorᴁ; f. the verb.]

Protection, shelter. Hence ˈberghless a., shelterless, unprotected.

   [c 1000 Ags. Ps. xlv[i]. 1 Dryhten ys ure ᴁebeorh.]    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 926 Ðin berȝ and tin
werȝer ic ham.    Ibid. 3048 Al ðat it fond Berȝles, it sloȝe in ðat lond.
.

HELM
heregrīma
īsenhelm
BT

BTs

CH

MED

OED
Isegrim

(ˈaɪzəgrɪm)

Also 7 Isgrin.

[a. MHG., Ger. Isegrimm, Isengrimm, also Isengrîn, Eisengrein, MDu. Isengryn, Isegrijn, -grijm,
Du. Ijzegrim, the name of the wolf in Reynard the Fox, and other beast-fables; in OHG. Isangrîm
as a man's name, f. îsan, îsen, etc. ‘iron’ + -grîm, cf. grîma, mask, hood, {helmet}; but in later use
often associated with grime, grim, wrathful, fierce.]

An appellation applied, after the manner of a proper name, to the wolf. rare in Eng. use.

   1481 Caxton Reynard ii, Isegrym the wulf wyth his lynage and frendes cam and stode to fore
the kynge. Passim.    1622 Fletcher Beggar's Bush iii. iii, I know to chase the Roe, The winde
out-stripping, Isgrin [mod. ed. Isgrim] himself.

isen
BT

ĪSEN, es ; n. Iron, steel, an implement made of iron :-- Īsen ferrum, Wrt. Voc. 85, 13 : Ælfc. Gr. 5 ; Som.
4, 58. Ðis ȳsen hic calibs, 9 ; Som. 13, 18. Eorþe swilce īsen terra ferrea, Deut. 28, 23. Ðā wæs se ofen
onhǣted īsen eall þurhglēded then was the furnace heated, the iron made red hot, Cd. 186; Th. 231, 8;
Dan. 244. Īsenes scearpnyss acumen, Ælfc. Gr. 9; Som. 9, 31. Gemeng tōgædere mid glōwende īsene mix
together with a glowing iron, L. M. 2, 24; Lchdm. ii. 216, 1. Ne delfe nān man ða moran mid īsene let no
man dig up the roots with iron, Lchdm. iii. 30, 24. Būtan ǣlcan īsene genumen gathered without using
any iron implement, Lchdm. iii. 4, 29 [cf. Grmm. D. M. 1148, sqq. as to the use of iron in getting plants].
The two following passages refer to the ordeal [v. īsen-ordāl] by hot iron :-- Gif hē hine lādian wille
ðonne gā hē tō ðam hātum īsene and lādige ða hand mid ðe man tȳhþ if he be willing to clear himself, then
let him go to the hot iron, and clear the hand therewith that is accused, L. Ath. i. 14; Th. 206, 23. Ǣlc
tiōnd āge geweald swā hwæðer hē wille swā wæter swā īsen, L. Eth. iii. 6 ; Th. i. 296, 4. Ācele ðū wealhāt
īsen ðonne hit furþum sīe of fȳre ātogen cool very hot iron when it is just drawn from the fire, L. M. 2,
45 ; Lchdm. ii. 256, 15. [Ayenb. izen (but the general form in middle English is that with r) : O. H. Ger.
īsen : Ger. eisen,] v. īren, īsern ; brand-, delf-, gād-, ordāl-īsen.

BTs
īsen; n. Add: I. iron :-- Glād hit on þǣm scyllum swelce hit wǣre smēðe īsen, Ors. 4, 6; S. 174, 8.
Grǣghǣwe īsene ferrugine, Wrt. Voc. ii. 35, 34. Gewyrme mid hāte glōwende īsene, Lch. ii. 236, 32 :
218, 24. Hiē him wǣpeno worhton þā þe īsen hæfdon, Ors. 4, 13 ; S. 210, 25. II. an implement, a tool, &
c. , made of iron :-- Þā rǣsde forð þæt īsen (īren, v. l. ferrum head of a hatchet) of þām hylfe, Gr. D. 113,
26. Aðamans mon mid nāne īsene ceorfan ne mæg, Past. 271, 3. Ðæt īsen ðæt hiē men mid lācnian
sculdon, 364, 10. Hē teāh  īsen (cf. þās hringan, 66) ūp, Hml. S. 21, 69. Hēt se kyning lecgan hāte īsena
under his nacodum fōtum, ac arn wæter ūp and cēlde þā īsena, 36, 392. v. bærn-, brǣd-, ceorfing-, mearc-,
mynet-, screādung-, snid-īsen.

CH

MED

1a.

(a) Iron, as ore, metal, or commodity; of ~, made of iron or consisting of iron parts; (b) a piece of
iron; (c) filinge (limature) of ~, iron filings; filth (rust) of ~, iron rust; scurf (sinder) of ~, the
slag of iron separated from the ore during smelting, scoria; squame of ~, ?scales of iron rust;
water of ~, ?a liquid preparation containing iron in some form; ?the water in which hot iron is
quenched; (d) in sayings.

3.

(a) A weapon or weapon head made of iron or steel; coll. weapons; ~ and stel, arms; ne (neither)
~ ne stel, no weapon whatsoever; with ~ and fir, with killing and burning, with complete
devastation; (b) armor; a piece of armor; ~ and stel; ?also, an iron shirt worn for penance.
OED

wīgheafola
BT
wig-heafola (?) :-- [Hē] wōd þurh đone wælrēc wīg[hea]folan bær freān on fultum. Beo. Th. 5316; B.
2661. Hea is the reading of Thorkelin's transcripts, but now the MS. shews only quite uncertain traces of
h, and ea is entirely gone (Zupitza). Wīg-heafola is taken to mean a helmet by some editors: Grein
suggests wīgneafolan = umbonem bellicum i. e. clypeum. Could the reading be wīgneafolan ? Cf. Icel vīgr
in fighting state, serviceable for fighting, and afli strength; so that the passage would mean he had or
brought strength that might serve to help his lord in battle.

BTs

CH

MED

OED

wīg
BT
wīg, es; n. I. fight, battle, war, conflict :-- Wīg oððe gefeoht mavors, Wrt. Voc. ii. 55, 37. Ðonne wīg
cume, Beo. Th. 46 ; B. 23: 5737; B. 2872. Wīg ealle fornam, 2165; B. 1080: Exon. Th. 291, 11; Wand. 80:
Elen. Kmbl. 262 ; El. 131. Wæs ðæs wyrmes wīg wīde gesȳne, nearofāges nið neān and feorran, hū se
gūðsceaða Geāta leōde hatode and hȳnde, Beo. Th. 4621; B. 2316. Ful oft ðǣr wīg ne ālæg there was
constantly war, Exon. Th. 325, 30; Vīd. 119. Wīges on wēnum expectant of battle, Cd. Th. 188, 30; Exod.
176. Wīges bīdan, Beo. Th. 2541; B. 1268. Se wyrm getrūwode wīges and wealles the dragon trusted to
battle (or under II ?) and bulwark, 4635 ; B. 2323. Him wæs hild boden, wīges wōma, Elen. Kmbl. 37 ;
El. 19 : Andr. Kmbl. 2709; An. 1357 : Exon. Th. 277, 5 ; Jul. 576. Sumum wīges spēd hē giefeþ æt gūþe,
42, 16; Cri. 673. Wæs Hrōðgāre herespēd gyfen, wīges weorðmynd. Beo. Th. 130; B. 65. Hē hafaþ wīgges
leān, blǣd būtan blinne. Elen. Kmbl. 1647 ; El. 825. Sum bið wīges heard, beadocræftig beorn, Exon. Th.
295, 27; Crä. 39: (Ulysses) Met. 26, 13 : (Sigemund) Beo. Th. 1776; B. 886: (St. Andrew) Andr. Kmbl.
1677; An. 841. Wīges oflysted, 2454; An. 1228. Wīges hrēmige, Chr. 937; Erl. 115, 8. Wīges sæd, Erl.
112, 20. Him wīge forstōd fæder frumsceafta, wearð him seō feohte tō grim, Exon. Th. 317, 14; Mōd. 65.
Heald mē here&dash-uncertain;wǣpnum wið unholdum, and wīge belūc feōndum effunde frameam, et
conclude adversus eos, Ps. Ben. 34, 3. Wīgge, Beo. Th. 3545 ; B. 1770. Wīgge under wætere, 3316 ; B.
1656. Æt wīge cringan, 2679; B. 1337. Æt wīge sigecempa, Ps. C. 9. Æt wīgge spēd, sigor æt sæcce, æt
gefeohte frið, Elen. Kmbl. 2362; El. 1182. Hē mid wīge ācwealde ðone cyning and ðæt folc percusserunt
urbem et omnes habitatores ejus, Jos. 10, 30. Hī mid wīge ācwealdon eall ðæt hī ðǣr fundon percussit in
ore gladii universas animas, quae in ea fuerant, 10, 37. Gif hwā mid wīge godcundra gerihta forwyrne. . .
Gif hē man gewundige. . . Gif hē man āfylle . . . Gif hē gewyrce ðæt man hine āfylle, L. C. S. 49; Th. i.
404, 6 -- 12. Hē gewann mid wīge ðone eard cepit omnem terrain, Jos. 11, 23: Homl. Th. ii. 216, 1. Seō
burhwaru heōldan mid fullan wīge ongeān. Chr. 1013; Erl. 148, 12. Hū him speōw ǣgðer ge mid wīge ge
mid wīsdōme, Past. pref.; Swt. 3, 8. Giefe on wīge, Exon. Th. 299, 25; Crä. 107. Hē on wīgge (in bello)
āfeallen wæs, Chart. Th. 201, 27. Cēne tō wīge, Jud. p. 162, 30. Ðæt folc wurdon gewexene tō wīge ful
strange, Homl. Th. ii. 212, 18. Man beōnn ealle Cant&dash-uncertain;ware tō wīgge, Chart. Th. 201, 21.
Ǣghwylc ōþerne bylde tō wīge, Byrht. Th. 138, 44; By. 235. Tō wīgge faran, Chart. Th. 201, 22. Hiē
giredon hiō tō wīge, Ors. 3, 5; Swt. 106, 17. Wīgge, Elen. Kmbl. 95; El. 48. Hē sende twelf þūsenda
gewǣpnodra manna tō ðam wīge (ad pugnam), Num. 31, 6. Hī beōd gewǣpnode on ða wīsan ðe man hors
gewǣpnaþ, ðonne man tō wīge þencð, Wulfst. 200, 11. Hiē heora land oferhergodan, and him ðæs nǣnige
bōte dydon, būton ofermōdlīce wīg and þreātunge, Blickl. Homl. 201, 24. Abraham sealde wīg tō wedde,
nalles wunden gold, Cd. Th. 124, 29; Gen. 2070. Oft ic (a shield) @bt_b1220 wīg seō, frēcne feohtan.
Exon. Th. 388, 6; Rä. 6, 3. Wælhwelpes wīg, 397, 21; Rä. 16, 23. Gesēcean wīg, Beo. Th. 1374; B. 685.
Wīg gefeohtan, 2170; B. 1083. An wīg gearwe, 2499; B. 1247. II. fighting force (abstract or concrete),
valour; troops :-- Wæs his mōdsefa manegum gecȳðed, wīg and wīsdōm. Beo. Th. 705; B. 350. Nǣfre on
ōre læg wīdcūþes wīg, ðonne walu feōllon, 2088; B. 1082: Exon. Th. 338, 27; Gn. Ex. 85. On Mōyses
hand wearð wīg gifen, wigena mænieo, Cd. Th. 216, 11; Dan. 5. Hē mid ðam ōðrum flocce tō ðære birig
fērde beōtlīce mid wīge ascendit cum senioribus in fronte exercitus, vallatus auxilio pugnatorum, Jos. 8,
10. Ðanon hē gewende mid wīge tō Lebna and oferwann ða burh transivit cum omni Israel in Lebna et
pugnabat contra eam, 10, 29. Offōr hiene (Philip) ōðere Sciþþie mid lytelre firde ... Philippus him dyde
heora wīg unweorð (made light of their force), Ors. 3, 7; Swt. 118, 2. Ne hē him ðæs wyrmes wīg for wiht
dyde, eafoð and ellen, Beo. Th. 4685; B. 2348. [He scheldede his scalken al se heo to wiȝe solden, Laym.
4728. Com mid muchle wiȝe (a great force) Irtac, 25365. To werchen wi to fight, Gen. and Ex. 3220. O.
Sax. wīg: O. Frs. wīch: O. H. Ger. wīc (ch, g) bellum, proelium, pugna, militia: Icel. vīg; n. Cf. Goth.
waihjō pugna.] v. ān-, and- (Exon. Th. 112, 22; Gū. 147), camp-, fēðe-, þræc-, weorold-wīg; or-wīge. The
word is found in proper names, v. Txts. p. 631.

wīg (?); adj. v. wīg-heafola.

wiga, an; m. I. one who fights, a (fighting) man, a warrior :-- Wiga heros, Ælfc. Gr. 9, 31; Zup. 57, 11.
Wiga oððe wīgstrang bellipolens, Wrt. Voc. ii. 12, 45. Iung wiga tyro, i. 18, 16. Wiga wintrum geong,
Byrht. Th. 137, 62; By. 210. Wælreōw wiga (Beowulf), Beo. Th. 1262; B. 629. Wiga ellenrōf, Wald. 79;
Vald. 2, 11. Wāc wiga, Exon. Th. 290, 18; Wand. 67. Wigan wīgheardne, Byrht. Th. 133, 64; By. 75: Cd.
Th. 189, 22; Exod. 188. Wigan unforhte, mōdige twēgen, Byrht. Th. 134, 5; By. 79. Wigan on gewinne,
140, 42; By. 302: Cd. Th. 197, 23; Exod. 311: 219, 22; Dan. 58. Ðǣr wigan sittaþ on beōrsele blīðe
ætsomne, Runic pm. Kmbl. 342, 4; Rūn. 14. Wigena æscberendra, Cd. Th. 123, 6; Gen. 2040. Wigena
mænieo, 216, 12; Dan. 5. Wigena strengest(Beowulf), Beo. Th. 3091; B. 1543. Hī sendon māran sciphere
strengran wihgena mittitur classis prolixior armatorum, Bd. 1, 15; S. 483, 16. Wigum and wǣpnum, Beo.
Th. 4779; B. 2395. ¶ in phrases denoting a chief or leader :-- Wigena hlāford (Byrhtnoth), Byrht. Th. 135,
49; By. 135. Wigena baldor (Holofernes), Judth. Thw. 22, 5; Jud. 49. Dauid cyning, wigena baldor, Elen.
Kmbl. 688; El. 344. Wigena hleō ... wigena weard (Constantine), Elen. 300-306; El. 150-153. Wigena
strengel (Beowulf), Beo. Th. 6222; B. 3115. Similarly the Deity is called wigena wyn, Exon. Th. 281, 4;
Jul. 641. Ia. used of that which destroys :-- Wiga wælgifre (death), Exon. Th. 162, 7; Gū. 972: 231, 8; Ph.
486. Wiga unlæt lāces, 164, 4; Gū. 1006. Fȳr swearta lēg, weallende wiga, 61, 15; Cri. 985. Wiga (a dog?
fire?) is on eorþan wundrum ācenned, 433, 23; Rä. 51, 1. II. a noble, strenuous man :-- Se ðe mid wætere
oferwearp wuldres cynebearn, wiga weorþlīce, Menol. Fox 317; Men. 160. Wigan unslāwne (St. Andrew),
Andr. Kmbl. 3419; An. 1713. Wigena tīd (the day of St. Simon and St. Jude), Menol. Fox 370; Men. 186.
[Gaw. Allit. Pms. wyȝe; pl. wyȝes: Alex. (Skt.) wee; pl. wees, wies: Piers P. wy, wye. Cf. O. H. Ger. Wigo
(proper name).] v. æsc-, beorn-, byrn, cumbol-, folc-, gār-, gūð-, lind-, ord-, rǣde-, rand-, rīd-, scild-,
wǣpen-, þeōd-wiga.
BTs

CH

MED

OED

heafola
BT

hafela, hafala, heafela, heafola, an; m. The head; caput; κεφαλί :-- Se hwīta helm hafelan werede the
bright helm guarded the head, Beo.Th. 2901; B. 1448 : 2658; B. 1327 : 3564; B. 1780. Of ðæs hǣlendes
heafelan from the Saviour's head, Exon. 15 a; Th. 31, 34; Cri. 505. Heafolan, Beo.Th. 5352; B. 2679.
Hafalan, 896; B. 446.

BTs
hafela. Add :-- Ne hēdde hē þæs heafolan, B. 2697. Hē him of dyde helm of hafelan, 672 : 1521. Heāfde,
heafolan (heofulan, lxx. 3) eāgum capiti, fronti, oculis, Lch. i. lxxiv. 4. Men hafelan bǣron . . . Grendles
heāfod, B. 1635 : 1614. Hī Æscheres heafelan mētton, 1421. Hē hafelan onhylde, Gū. 1244. Hī woldon on
þām hysebeorðre heafolan gescēnan, An. 1144. Hēt Hildeburh hire suna sweoloðe befæstan . . . hafelan
multon, B. 1120. Se beorhta beāg . . . eādigra gehwām hlifað ofer heāfde. Heafelan līxað þrymme
biþeahte, Ph. 604. v. wīg-heafola.

CH

MED

OED
COAT OF MAIL/CORSELET

beaduhrægl

BT
beado-hrægl, es; n. A war-garment, coat of mail; bellica vestis, lorica :-- Beadohrægl on breōstum læg
the coat of mail lay on my breast, Beo. Th. 1108; B. 552. v. beadu-hrægl.

beadu-hrægl, es; n. A war-garment; bellica vestis, lorica. v. beado-hrægl.

BTS

CH

MED

OED

hrægl

BT
hrægel, hrægl, es; n. A garment, dress, robe, rail [in night-rail] clothing :-- Gerǣwen hrægel segmentata
vestis: þicce gewefen hrægel pavidensis: þenne gewefen hrægel levidensis: purpuren hrægel clavus vel
purpura: feala hiwes hrægel polymita: wōgum bewerod hrægel ralla vel rasilis: geedniwod eald hrægel
interpola vestis: geclūtad hrægel panucla: gediht hrægel acupicta: þrȳlen hrægel trilicis, Ælfc. Gl. 63;
Som. 68, 99-109; Wrt. Voc. 40, 10-19. Hrægl and hringas robe and rings, Beo. Th. 2394; B. 1195. Sæt
ðǣr sum þearfa nacod bæd hrægles and ælmessan a beggar sat there naked asked for a garment and an
alms, Blickl. Homl. 213, 33. Hrægles þearfa ic mē leāfum þecce lacking raiment I cover me with leaves,
Cd. 40; Th. 53, 25; Gen. 866. Ðisses hrægles neōt use this robe, Beo. Th. 2439; B. 1217. Wīf mōton under
brūnun hrægle tō hūsle gān mulieribus licet sub nigro velamine eucharistiam accipere, L. Ecg. C. 37; Th.
ii. 162, 7. Wese hē hrægle gelīc fiat ei sicut vestimentum, Ps. Th. 108, 19. Mid mete and mid hrægle with
food and clothing, Blickl. Homl. 41, 29. Se ðe mid ðon ānum hrægle wæs gegyrwed who was dressed in
that one garment, 169, 1. On medmyclum hrægle gehealdene moderate in dress, 185, 17. Man hine
forbærneþ mid his wǣpnum and hrægle he is burnt with his arms and clothing, Ors. 1, 1; Swt. 21, 8. Ðæt
hrægl ðe hē ǣr ðæm þearfan sealde the cloak that he had given to the beggar, Blickl. Homl. 215, 18: 223,
8. Ongan his hrægl teran began to rend his robe, Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 28; Jud. 283. Ða hwītan hrægl ðara
engla the white robes of the angels, Blickl. Homl. 121, 24. Sylle earmum mannum his ealde hrægl let him
give his old clothes to the poor, 53, 13. Hie hæfdon manige glengas deōrwyrþra hrægla they had many
ornaments of costly garments, 99, 19. Beaduscrūda betst hrægla sēlest, Beo. Th. 912; B. 454. Ān cild
hreglum [hræglum, MS. C.] bewunden infantem pannis involutum, Lk. Skt. 2, 12. Mid godwebbenum
hræglum with purple raiment, Blickl. Homl. 95, 20. @bt_b0556 Hrægl spolia, Ps. Spl. 67, 13. [O. Frs.
hreil, reil: O. H. Ger. hregil indumentum, coturnus; pl. trophæa, spolia.] DER. beadu-, beōd-, brēc-,
frum-, fyrd-, hrycg-, mere-, set-, setl-, wīte-hrægel.

BTS
hrægl. Add: I. a garment, vestment:--Þynwefen hrægl levidensis (vestis), Wrt. Voc. ii. 54, 17. Hrægl
peplum, An. Ox. 18 b, 74. Ðæt hrægl superhumerale, Past. 83, 22. Sceolde beōn āwriten siō racu ðæs
dōmes on ðǣm hrægle ðe mon hǣt rationale . . . On ðǣm selfan hrægle ðe hē on his breōstum wæg . . .
Swīðe ryhte ðæt hrægl is gehāten ðæt se sācerd beran sceolde ðæs dōmes racu, 77, 8-23. Hrecgli, hraecli
amiculo, Txts. 41, 155. Preōst hine clǣnsie in his hālgum hrægle (or under II a ? v. mæsse-hrægel)
ætforan wiōfode, Ll. Th. i. 40, 15. Gearwende hine mið hrægle (clamyde), Mt. L. 27, 27. Mið fellereōde
hrægle purpura, Mk. L. 15, 17. Cyrtel ł hrægl ðīn and hrægl ł hæcla tunicam tuam et pallium, Mt. L. 5, 40.
 purbple hrægl purpureum uestimentum, Jn. L. 19, 5. Gif mon næbbe būton ānfeald hrægl hine mid tō
wreōnne oþþe tō werianne, Ll. Th. i. 52, 24. Hī scīnaþ on manegra cynna hræglum (cf. wǣdum, Met. 25,
4) purpura claros nitente, Bt. 37, 1; F. 186, 3. 'Bring mē þā hrægl (vestimenta)' . . . þā hī þās hrægl
gesāwon . . . hī onfēngon heora āgenu hrægl, Gr. D. 202, 23-203, 2. Hrægla, Mt. L. 26, 67: 27, 35. Woedo
ł hræglo ł clāþas, Mk. L. 14, 63. II. with collective force, dress, garments, clothes, clothing, raiment:--Siō
mennisce wǣdl wilnað . . . ǣgðer ge hrægles ge metes ge drynces, Bt. 26, 2; S. 60, 18. Hī hine hrægles
bǣdon (vestimenta petebant) . . . Se þegn  hrægl (uestimenta) brōhte tō þām lāreōwe . . . hē cwæð:
'Cumað, nimað þis hrægl and scrȳdað eōw mid,' Gr. D. 202, 20-28. Horses hȳde hī habbað him tō hrægle
gedōn pelliculas equorum ad uestimentum habentes, Nar. 38, 2. Mid swelce hrægle (veste) hē in eōde, mid
swelce gange hē ūt, Ll. Th. i. 46, 3. II a. clothes that a person is wearing, (a person's) dress:--Gif hwā
nunnan . . . on hire hrægl gefō, Ll. Th. 72, 9. III. cloth, material of which clothing for persons or
coverings for things are made:--In huītum hrægle (or under I ?) and on asca in cilicio et cinere, Lk. L. R.
10, 13. Sȳ on wintra seō cuhle of þiccum hrægle, R. Ben. 8, 11. III a. a cloth (e. g. an altar-cloth. v.
wīgbed-hrægel), a sheet, a covering (e. g. of a wall. v. wāg-hrægl):--Is ofer his byrgenne stōwe
treōwgeweorc on gelīcnesse medmycles hūses geworht mid hrægle (hrægele, v. l.) gegearwod (coopertus),
Bd. 4, 3; Sch. 366, 10. Līchoma innbewand mid līnene hrægle corpus inuoluit sindone, Lk. L. 23, 53. In
hrægle (scētan, R., scȳtan, W. S.) clǣnum in sindone mundo, Mt. L. 27. 59. Hiā biuundun hine mið
linninum hræglum (mid līnenum clāðe, W. S.) ligauerunt eum linteis, Jn. L. 19, 40. Wǣfelsum, hræglum
sabanis (in sabanis et sindonibus bajulabantur aegroti, Ald. 49, 18), An. Ox. 3588. Rægelum, 2, 229. v.
bearm-, deād-, hand-, heāfod-, līc-, mæsse-, mēs-, on-, sculdor-, stric-, wāg-, wīf-, wīgbed-hræg(e)l.

CH

MED

OED

† rail, n.1 Obs.

Forms: 1 hræᴁ(e)l, hreᴁl, etc., 2 ræᴁ(e)l, reil, 3 reȝel, 5 reile, 6 raill, rayll, rale, 6–7 raile, rayl(e,
7–8 (9 Sc.) rail.

[OE. {hræᴁl}, hræᴁel = OFris. (h)reil, OHG. (h)regil, hrecil, of obscure etym.]

1.1 A garment, dress, mantle, cloak.

   a 700 Epinal Gloss. 84 Amiculo, hraecli [Erf. hræᴁl, Corpus hręᴁli].    c 897 K. Ælfred
Gregory's Past. xiv. 82 Ðæt hræᴁl‥sceolde bion ᴁeworht of purpuran.    c 1000 Ags. Gosp. John
xiii. 4 He‥lede his reaf & nam linen hræᴁel [Hatton MS. rail].    c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 5 Þa oðre
men þe reil nefden.    a 1250 Owl & Night. 562 Þu art lutel and unstrong And nis þi reȝel nowiht
long.

b.1.b A woman's gown (? misuse of sense 2).

   c 1817 Hogg Tales & Sk. (1837) II. 15 She was dressed in a plain white rail.

2.2 A piece of linen or other cloth formerly worn about the neck by women; a neckerchief. See
also night-rail.

   1482 Act 22 Edw. IV, c. 1 They shall not suffer their wives to weare any reile called a
kercheffe, whose price exceedeth twentie pence.    1530 Palsgr. 260/2 Rayle for a woman's neck,
crevechief en quattre doubles.    1592 Nashe P. Penilesse (ed. 2) 8 A course hempen raile about
her shoulders.    a 1635 Corbet Poems (1807) 232 Ladyes, that weare black cipress-vailes Turn'd
lately to white linnen-rayles.    1678 Phillips (ed. 4) s.v., The‥gathered piece of Cloth which
Women throw about their necks, when they dress them‥is also called a Rail.    1710 Ruddiman
Gloss. Douglas' Æneis s.v. Ralis, A womans rail or collar-body, as Scot. Bor. call it.

Comb.    1558 Richmond Wills (Surtees) 126 Fower crepings‥iiij railbandes.

beaduscrūd
BT
beadu-scrūd, es; n. [scrūd clothes] Warlike apparel, warlike garmen a coat of mail; bellicum
vestimentum, lorica :-- Beaduscrūda betst mine breōst wereþ the best of warlike garments defends my
breast, Beo. Th. 910; B. 453.

BTS

CH
med

h re (n.(1)) Also her, heir(e, herre, ere, har(e & (early) hære, heare, heore & hir(e, (?pl.)
heren.

[OE here. Forms with i & eo are prob. due to the influence of OE h red, h ored household.]

1.

(a) A band or host of armed men, an army (either invading or defending); (b) a host of angels or
devils; hevenes ~, helles ~; fig. devles ~, evil thoughts or desires; (c) a crowd of people,
company, multitude; a swarm of frogs; a collection of treasures; (d) in (on) bak ~, at the rear of
an army.

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2.

(a) Warfare, invasion; devastation by war; mid fir and mid ~, with fire and sword; wis of ~, wise
in warfare; (b) military service or a tax in lieu of such service.

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3.

In cpds. & combs.: (a) ~ gong, ~ 3(e)ong [cp. OE here-gang & ME yong n. (2)], a military
expedition, an invasion; also, devastation; heriel [cp. OE here-gild], Danegeld; ~ path [OE
here-pæþ], ~ strete [OE here-str t, -str t], an army road, a highway; also in place names; ~
wedes [cp. OE here-w d, -w d], armor; (b) ~ burne [cp. brinie], ~ shroud, a coat of mail; ~
dring, ~ thring [cp. dreng], ~ gume [cp. gome n. (1)], ~ kempe, ~ knight, a warrior; ~ fare,
military service or a tax in lieu of such service; ~ feng, booty, plunder; ~ ishole [cp. OE hand-
scolu], a band of warriors; ~ marke, a battle standard; (c) in place names [see Smith PNElem.
1.244-5]; hereford whit, a kind of cloth.

oed

scrūd
BT
scrūd, es ; n. I. dress, clothing, attire :-- Hræglung vestitus, scruud habitus, Wrt. Voc. i. 39, 69. Hwæt
begytst ðū of ðīnum cræfte ? Bigleofan and scrūd (vestitum) and feoh, Coll. Monast. Th. 23, 5. Hē sylþ
him andlyfene and scrūd dat ei victum et vestitum, Deut. 10, 18 : L. Pen. 15; Th. ii. 282, 26. II. an article
of dress, a garment :-- Scrūd vestis, clamis. Wrt. Voc. i. 25, 50. Cildes scrūd praetexta, 25, 56. Slēfleās
scrūd colobium, slēfleās ancra scrūd levitonarium, 40, 20, 21. @bt_b0843 Scrūde melote, veste, Hpt. Gl.
492, 52. Hē sealde hira ǣlcum twā scrūd (stolas), and hē sealde Beniamine fīf scrūd, Gen 45, 22. [Laym.
scrud : Orm. shrud: A. R. schrud : Ayenb. ssroud : Piers P. shroud dress, garment : Icel. skrūð shrouds of
a ship, tackle.] v. beadu-, byrdu-, gūþ-, munuc-, nun-, ofer-, wīf-scrūd.

BTs
scrūd. I. add: Fīf mancusas gold . . . tō fyrþrunge and tō scrūde, Cam. Phil. Soc. 1902, p. 15. II. add :--
'Āsend him twā scrūd (vestes mutatorias duplices) and sum pund'. . . 'Genim feōwer scrūd (vestimenta)
and twā pund,' Hml. Th. i. 400, 19-21. Se gȳtsere hæfð ǣnne līchaman and menigfealde scrūd, 66, 1.

beaduserce
BT
beadu-serce, an; f. A war-shirt, coat of mail; bellica tunica, lorica :-- Ic gefrægn sunu Wihstānes beran
beadusercean I heard that Wihstan's son bore the coat of mail, Beo. Th. 5503; B. 2755.

BTS

CH

MED

OED

brēost-net
BT
breōst-net, -nett, es; n. [breōst, net a net] A breast-net, covering for the breast, breast-plate; pectorale
reticulatum, thorax :-- Him on eaxle læg breōstnet broden on his shoulder lay the braided breastplate,
Beo. Th. 3100; B. 1548: Cd. 154; Th. 192, 24; Exod. 236.

BTS

CH
MED

br st (n.(1)) Also (N) breist; (SW) breost, brost, brust; (SE) bryest; (late) brist, breast. Pl. br
stes, (SW) breosten, breostes; (SE) bryesten.

[OE br ost. There is some evidence for shortening of to e in late ME.]

1a.

(a) The thorax or chest, esp. as containing the vital organs; streightnesse of ~, asthma; nimen
under ~, swallow (sth.); (b) womb, bosom.

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1b.

(a) The thorax of an animal; chest (of a horse, dog, etc.); breast (of a bird); fore-part (of a fish);
belly (of a snake); (b) a cut of meat: breast (of mutton).

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2.

(a) The front of the thorax, breast; (b) beten, knokken ~, beat (one's) breast, as in remorse or
supplication; croicen ~, make the sign of the cross on (one's) breast.

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3.

The mammary gland; a woman's breast; barn on ~, a nursling; departen fro ~, wean (a child).

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4.

(a) A breastplate; (b) the part of a garment covering the chest.

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5.

(a) The breast as the seat of life, the emotions, the mind; heart, bosom, breast; (b) goddes ~,
God's bosom.

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6.

(a) The front or van (of an army); (b)?the weir (of a millpond).

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7.

Cpds. ~ ater, venom; ~ band, ~ bundel, ~ girdel, brassiere, ?sash; ~ blod, heartblood, lifeblood;
~ bon, q.v.; ~ bred, q.v.; ~ broche, ~ lin, the pectoral of a Jewish High Priest; ~ clout, a bib; ~
high, waist-high; ~ holk, chest cavity; ~ kerchef, a shawl; ~ pitte, the pit of the stomach; ~ plate,
q.v.; ~ rot, the depth of one's heart; ~ þonk [OE breost-geþanc], innermost thought, heart; ~
wounde, mortal wound.

OED

brēost
BT
BBEŌST, es; n. I. the breast of man or beast; pectus :-- Ðæt mīne breōst wereþ that defends my breast,
Beo. Th. 911; B. 453. On breōstum læg lay on my breast, 1109; B. 552. He beōt his breōst percutiebat
pectus suum, Lk. Bos. 18, 13. Blīð on breōstum mild in the breast [stomach], Cd. 30; Th. 41, 13; Gen.
656. Ðū gǣst on ðīnum breōste super pectus tuum gradieris, Gen. 3, 14. II. the breasts; ubera :-- Ða
breōst ðe ðū suce ubera quæ suxisti, Lk. Bos. 11, 27. Ða breōst ðe ne sīcton ubera quæ non lactaverunt,
23, 29. Ðǣr wearþ Alexander þurhscoten mid ānre flān UNCERTAIN underneoðan oðer breōst there
Alexander was shot through with an arrow underneath one breast, Ors. 3, 9; Bos. 68, 27. III. the breast as
the seat of the vital powers, of the feelings, and of the affections, The heart, mind, thought; pectus, cor,
mens :-- Drihtnes wæs barn on breōstum byrnende lufu in both their breasts there was the burning love of
the Lord, Cd. 10; Th. 12, 25; Gen. 191. Hwæðre he in breōstum ða git hērede -- in heortan -- heofonrīces
weard nevertheless he still in his breast -- in his heart -- honoured the guardian of heaven's kingdom,
Andr. Kmbl. 102; An. 51. Mæg ðīn mōd wesan blīðe on breōstum thy mind may be blithe in thy breast.
Cd. 35; Th. 46, 28; Gen. 751. Beoran on breōstum blīðe geþohtas to bear in our breasts blithe thoughts,
217; Th. 277, 17; Sat. 206. Adame innan breōstum his hyge hwyrfde Adam within his breast
@bt_b0124his mind, 33; Th. 44, 27; Gen. 715. Ðū ūra breōsta āna aspyrigend eart tu nostrorum
pectorum solus investigator es, Hymn. Surt. 33, 21. Dēma ðū ætbist smēgan dǣda breōstes judex aderis
rimari facta pectoris, 36, 20. Gefyll mid heofonlīcre gyfe ðe ðū gesceōpe breōst imple superna gratia quæ
tu creasti pectora, 92, 9. [IChauc. Wyc. brest: R. Glouc. breste: Laym. breoste: Orm. brest: Plat. borst,
bost, f: O. Sax. briost, breost, n: Frs. boarst, m. f: O. Frs. brust: Dut. Kil. borst, f: Ger. M. H. Ger. O. H.
Ger. brust. f: Goth. brusts, f: Dan. bryst, n: Swed. brouml;st, n; Icel. brjōst, n.] DER. byled-breōst, fōre-.

BTS
breōst. Add; [The word occurs of all three genders, and can be used in the plural (dual) when a single
person is referred to.] I. the front of the chest :-- Mid gildenum girdle his breōst wæs befangen . . . hē silf
wæs begird æt his hālgum breōste (praecinctus ad mamillas zona aurea, Rev. l, 13), Ll. Th. ii. 370, 4-7.
Oþ mannes breōst (cf. swyran, Shrn. 81, 13) heah, Bl. H. 127, 6. Cumađ deōr . . . , and heora breōsta beōđ
mid byrnum befangene (habebant loricas, Rev. 9, 9), Wlfst. 200, 12. Hē hlinode ofer đæs Hǣlendes
breōstum (onufa breōst supra pectus, L. R.), Jn. 13, 25. Þæs lāreōwes scōh hē āsette on đā breōst (pectus)
þæs deādan līchama. . . Gr. D. 19, 12. II. the chest, thorax :-- Breōst thorax, Wrt. Voc. i. 65, 6 ; 283, 27 :
pectus, 28. On iugođe biđ se līchama þeōnde on strangum breōste, Hml. Th. i. 614, 11. III. the stomach,
womb :-- Breōst crassum (ventrem, v. l.), Lch. i. lxx, i. Wiþ innoþes sāre and þǣra breōsta (or under IV?),
Lch. i. 182, 21. Þis ofet is swā swēte, blīđ on breōstum (bonum ad vescendum), Gen. 656. On þām hālgan
breōstum hē eardode nigon mōnaþ, Bl. H. 105, 16. IV. a breast; mamma, mamilla :-- Hē hēt hī gewrīđan
on đām breōste, and hēt siđđan of āceorfan. Heō him cwæđ tō: ' Ne sceamode þē tō ceorfanne   đū
sylf suce, ac ic habbe mīne breōst on mīnre sāwle ansunde '. . . Heō beseah tō hyre breōste and wæs 
corfene breōst geedstađelod, Hml. S. 8, 122, 146. Þurh þæt swīđre breōst, Sal. K. 204, 25. Underneođan
oþer breōst sub mamma. Ors. 3, 9 ; S. 134, 23. Sceal mon þis wrītan and dōn þās word on þā winstran
breōst, Lch. ii. 140, 27. Breōstum pipillis, papillis, Wrt. Voc. ii. 94, 54. Briōst mamillas, Lch. i. lxxii, 2.
V. breast as seat of feeling, &c. :-- Hū mycel se camp wæs in þæs mannes breōste . . . Seō ārfæstnys
oferswȳđde þone strangan breōst, forđon nǣre se breōst oferfunden, gif hine seō ārfæstnes ne oferswȳđde,
Gr. D. 18, 2-22. Þurh þone hālegan breōsđ ūres fæder, 2, 19. His breōsđ siēn simle onhielde for
ārfæstnesse tō forgiefnesse per pietatis viscera citius ad ignoscendum flectitur, Past. 61, 12. v. ang-breōst.

CH
brēost nmf. (usu. in pi.) 'breast,' bosom, B,
Lk,Lcd', A.O,d3 : stomach, womb : mind,
thought, disposition, Gen;CP : 'ubertas,'
CPs35s.

MED

4.

(a) A breastplate; (b) the part of a garment covering the chest.

OED

net
BT
nett, es; n. I. a net (for fowling, fishing, or hunting) :-- Net rete, Wrt. Voc. i. 285, 16. Nyt, 73, 41. Ned
cassis, ii. 14, 3. Hyra net wæs tōbrocen, Lk. Skt. 5, 6. Ūres fisceres nett nostri piscatoris rete, Ælfc. Gr.
15; Som. 19, 57. Feallaþ on nette his cadent in retiaculo ejus, Ps. Spl. 140, 11. Ic mīn nett ūt lǣte laxabo
rete, Lk. Skt. 5, 5: Mt. Kmbl. 4, 18. Lǣtaþ ðæt nett on ða swīðran healfe, Jn. Skt. 21, 6. Ic brēde nett
plecto, Ælfc. Gr. 28 ; Som. 32, 8. Ōþ ðæt ðe hig (wildeōr) cuman tō ðām nettan ... Ne canst ðū huntian
būton mid nettum? Coll. Monast. Th. 21, 15-21 : 22, 11. On feala wīsan ic beswīce fugelas, hwīlon mid
nettum, 25, 11. Hī forlēton hyra nett (netta, Lind.) relictis retibus, Mt. Kmbl. 4, 22 : Homl. Th. i. 578, 21.
II. a mosquito-net :-- Nette, fleōgryfte conopio, Wrt. Voc. ii. 19, 18. III. net-work, web :-- Swā tedre swā
swā gangewifran nett, Ps. Th. 38, 12. Ðonne hiō (the spider) geornast biþ ðæt heō āfǣre fleōgan on nette,
89, 10. Folc gescylde hālgan nette (with a net-work of clouds), Cd. Th. 182, 11 ; Exod, 74. [Goth. nati : O.
Sax. netti, (fisk-)net : O. Frs. nette : Icel. net; gen. pl. netja : O. H. Ger. nezzi rete.] v. ǣl-, boge-, breōst-,
deōr-, dræg-, feng-, fisc-, fleōh-, here-, hring-, inwit-, mycg-, searo-, wæl-nett, and next word. @bt_b0717

BTs
nett. I. add :-- Gif hwylc deōr byð on nette āwyrged si fera aliqua in rete strangulata sit, Ll. Th. ii. 214,
1. Fleōtas (-es, MS. ) tō nette aestuaria, Wrt. Voc. i. 57, 9. Hwæþer gē nū settan eōwer nett on dā hēhstan
dūne ðonne gē fiscian willað? ic wāt ðeāh  gē hit þǣr ne settað. Hwæþer gē nū eōwer hundas and eōwer
nett ūt on ðā sǣ lǣdon ðonne gē huntian willaþ ? ic wēne þeāh  gē hī ðonne settan ūp on dūnum and
innon wudum, Bt. 33, 3; F. 118, 11-15. v. feax-, fugol-, sǣ-, wīd(?)-nett.

CH
nett (y) n. 'net,' Æ,Bo,WW '• netting, net-
work, spider 's web, PPs. [Goth, nati]

MED

2.

(a) Something woven or constructed like a net; a piece of network fabric used for bed curtains,
clothing, etc.; metal-work net; her. the representation of a net on a coat of arms; gnat ~, a net to
keep out gnats; (b) a spider's web; (c) ?a container or unit of measure for cotton.

OED

brēostgewǣdu
BT

CH
brēostgewǽdu† np. corslet.

MED

OED
brēost
gewǣdu
byrne
BT
BYRNE, an; f. A corslet, coat of mail; lorica, thorax :-- Mōt he gesellan monnan and byrnan and sweord
he may give a man a corslet and a sword, L. In. 54; Th. i. 138, 1. Ðǣr wæs on eorle brogden byrne there
was on the man the twisted coat of mail, Elen. Kmbl. 513; El. 257. Ætbær hringde byrnan he bore away
the ringed coat of mail, Beo. Th. 5224; B. 2615. Ongan wyrcan sīde byrnan he began to make a large coat
of mail, Salm. Kmbl. 906; Sal. 453: Judth. 12; Thw. 26, 15; Jud. 328. [Laym. burne, brunie: Ger. brünne,
f: M. H. Ger. brïüuje, brünne, f: O. H. Ger. brunja, brunna, f: Goth. brunyo, f: Dan. brynie, m. f: Swed.
Icel. brynja, f: O. Slav, brunija.] DER. gūþ-byrne, heaðo-, heaðu-, here-, īren-, īsern-.

BTs
byrne a corslet. Add :-- Byrne lorica vel torax vel squama, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 6: thoraca, ii. 86, 81.
Hringedu byrne lorica hamata (anata, MS.), 51, 37. Byrne gileāfes lorica fidei, Rtl. 28, 31. Byrnan
thoracis, Wrt. Voc. ii. 96, 25. Bið se Pater Noster on heofonlicre byrnan onlīcnisse, Sal. K. 146, 6.
Gewǣpnod, nā mid reādum scylde, oððe mid hefegum helme, oþþe heardre byrnan, Hml. Th. ii. 502, 13.
Gegyrede heō hȳ mid hǣrenre tunecan and mid byrnan,  is mid lytelre hacelan, Shrn. 140, 30. Hē geann
his āðume twēgra byrnena, Cht. Crw. 23, 16. [O. L. Ger. brunnia.] v. brynige.

CH
byrne I. f. corslet, WW;CF.. ['burree']

MED

brinie (n.) Also brine, brin (in rime), brunie, brunee, brenie, brene & burne. Early pl.
burnen.

[OI brynja, OF brunie, bruine (vrr. of broigne) & OE byrne.]

(a) A coat of mail; corselet, cuirass, hauberk; brouden ~; -- also pl. for sg.; (b) ~ hod, a coif of
mail.

(a)  ?a1150 Chron.Tbr.B.1 (Tbr B.1)   an.1066:  Under þere brunie.  ?a1160 Peterb.Chron.

(LdMisc 636)   an.1137:  Me henged..other bi the hefed, & hengen bryniges on fet.  a1225(?OE)
Lamb.Hom.(Lamb 487)   155:  Scrudeð ow mid godes wepne and nimeð gode ileue to
burne.  a1225(?OE) Vsp.A.Hom.(Vsp A.22)   243:  Helm and brenie.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut
(Clg A.9)   1553:  Þah he hefde brunie on.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   1701:  Brutus
hehte his beornes don on heora burnan [Otho: brunies].  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)  
5006:  Alle his burnes duden on heore burnen [Otho: burnes].  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg
A.9)   21129:  Þa dude he on his burne ibroide of stele [Otho: brunie of stele].  c1275(?a1200)
Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   23217:  Burnen [Otho: brunies] þer breken.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut
(Clg A.9)   25816:  His bodi wes bifeong mid fæire are burne.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg
A.9)   27554:  And smat þene eorl Beduer forn a þan breoste, Þat þa burne [Otho: brunie] to-barst
sone biuoren and bihinde.  c1230(?a1200) *Ancr.(Corp-C 402)   103b:  Ich wat swuch þet bereþ
ba togederes, heui brunie [L loricam] & here ibunden hearde wið irn.  c1300(?c1225) Horn
(Cmb Gg.4.27)   717:  His brunie [vr. brenye] he gan lace.  (c1300) Havelok (LdMisc 108)  
1775:  Bernard stirt up..And caste a brinie up-on his rig.  c1330(?a1300) Tristrem (Auch)  
191:  On helmes gun þai hewe, Þurch brinies brast þe blod.  c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)  
3462:  Wiþ bri3t brini and wiþ scheld.  c1330 KTars (Auch)   1006:  Wiþ helme on heued &
brini [vr. brunye] bri3t Þat 3e ben alle redi di3t.  c1380 Firumb.(1) (Ashm 33)   3024:  Many was
þe helm & brynye bri3t þat þar was cloue.  ?a1400(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.2 (Petyt 511)  
p.189:  He gan first remue þe croice mad on his bryn [rime: pilgryn].  c1400(?a1300) KAlex.
(LdMisc 622)   1247:  Jn breny [LinI: bruny] of steel and riche weden.  c1400(?a1300) KAlex.
(LdMisc 622)   1868:  Alle y-armed..Wiþ bryny [vr. Bruny] and launce.  c1400(?c1390) Gawain
(Nero A.10)   580:  Þe brawden bryne of bry3t stel ryngez Vmbe-weued þat wy3.  c1400(?c1390)
Gawain (Nero A.10)   2018:  Þe ryngez rokked of þe roust of his riche bruny.  c1440(a1400)
Awntyrs Arth.(Thrn)   380:  His brenyes [vr. brene] and his bacenett, burneschet fulle
bene.  c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)   1482:  The breny one þe bakhalfe he brystez in
sondyre.  c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)   2253:  With his burlyche brande a buffette
hym reches Thourghe þe brene and þe breste.  c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)  
4119:  Bryneys browdden they briste.  a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)  
4382:  Fol manie þey slowe..& perced brunyes, brest & hert.  a1450(a1400) Medit.Pass.(2) (Add
11307)   1591:  Ihesu, þou hast no trompes loude..Ne brunye bry3t, ne haberioun.  ?
a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.(1) (LdMisc 656)   277:  Þan was rotlyng in Rome, robbyng of
brynnyes.  ?a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.(1) (LdMisc 656)   1238:  [Þey] 3elden hem alle, Without
brunee..in her bar chertes.  c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)   915:  A big berne..in brenys
[vr. brenes] to ryde.  c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)   1295:  Ser Balaan..atyres him
belyue, Buskes him in breneis [vr. brenes].  a1500(?a1325) Otuel & R (Fil)   1573:  Syxty
thousand..with helm and breny bry3t.  a1500(?c1400) Gowther (Adv 19.3.1)   429:  When blod
þro brenus brast.  

(b)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   16515:  & hi3inge hine igrap..bi þere burne [Otho:
brunie] hode þa wes an his hafde.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   23981:  And smat Trolle
uppen þæne hælm..þurh ut þere burne-hod [Otho: brunie-hod].  

OED
† ˈbyrnie
Obs. exc. Hist.

Forms: 4 (9 Hist.) byrny, 4–6 (9 Hist.) byrnie, 6 birny(e.

[Sc. variant of ME. brynie, brinie, with metathesis of r. The word was thus brought nearer to OE.
{byrne}, from which however it could not directly come, as this gave only the monosyllabic
*byrn, burne, bryn.]

A cuirass, corslet, coat of mail; = brinie.

   1375 Barbour Bruce ii. 352 The blud owt at thar byrnys brest.    c 1470 Henry Wallace ii. 106
Into ye byrneis [v.r. birny] ye formast can he ber.    1513 Douglas Æneis vii. xi. 95 His
breistplayt strang and his byrnie.    1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. I. 140 With breistplait, birny, as the
buriall brycht.    1864 G. W. Dasent Jest & Earn. (1873) II. 273 He had armed himself in two
byrnies or shirts of mail.    1870 Magnusson & Morris Volsungs xi. 37 No shield or byrny might
hold against him.

byrnham
BT

CH
byrn-ham, -hama† m. corslet.

MED

OED

ham
BT
ham, hom, es; m. A covering, garment, shirt :-- Ham camisa, Wrt. Voc. 288, 48. [Icel. hamr a skin.] v.
hama. DER. byrn-, fyrd-, scīr-ham.

BTS
ham a garment. Add :-- Colobium, dictum quia longum est et sine manicis loþa, hom vel smoc, mentel,
Wrt. Voc. ii. 134, 37. Hom colobium, i. 288, 34. Ham, hom, Txts. 46, 167. Haam camisa, 50, 244. Ham,
cemes, Wrt. Voc. ii. 13, 23. Ham, hacele subucula, An. Ox. 5316.

CH
ham I. m? under-garment ('subucula,'
OEQ), WW. ['hame'] II.=hamrn
ham I. m. ds. ham ' home,' dwelling, house,
Bl,Jn,LL; AO : manor, estate, hamlet, Æ,
BH,Mt. II. adv. 'home,' homewards,
Chr,Jn;Æ. III. 'caulerium,' A30-258;
33-390.
hama m. covering, dress, garment : womb,
'puerperium,' v. OEG : slough of a snake,
NC299 : bridle? LcD3'4212 (A30-257).

MED

OED

byrnhama
BT

BTs

CH
byrn-ham, -hama† m. corslet.

med

oed

fyrdhom
bt
fyrd-hom, es; m. [hom a covering, garment] A war-covering; bellĭca vestis, lōrĭca :-- Ðæt beo ðone
fyrdhom þurhfōn ne mihte that she might not pierce through the war-covering, Beo. Th. 3012; B. 1504.

bts

CH
fyrdham rn. corslet, B1504.

med

oed

goldhama
BT
gold-hama, an; m. A gilded or golden coat of mail, Elen. Kmbl. 1980; El. 992.
CH

MED

OED

guþbyrne
BT
gūþ-byrne; f. A coat of mail, Beo. Th. 648; B. 321.

BTS

CH

MED

OED

heaþubyrne
heoruserce
BT
heoru-serce, an; f. A war-shirt, coat of mail, Beo. Th. 5072; B. 2539.

BTS

CH
heoruserce† f. coat of mail.
MED

OED

serce
bt
serc, syrc, syric, es; m.: serce, syrce, an; f. A shirt, shift, smock, tunic, sark (Scott.) :-- Loða, serc
colobium, Hpt. Gl. 493, 76. Smoc vel syrc. Wrt. Voc. i. 25, 60. Syric colobium vel interula, 81, 69. Syrc
suppar, interula, 59, 24. Serc armilausia, 284, 61: ii. 8, 16. Serce, 100, 77: 7, 4. Swātfāh syrce, Beo. Th.
2226; B. 1111. Ðæt hē hæbbe syric (tunicam), R. Ben. 89, 10. Genōh is munuce ðæt hē hæbbe twegen
syricas (tunicas), for ðære nihtware and for ðæs reāfes þweāle, 91, 3. Syrcan, gūþgewǣdo shirts of mail,
Beo. Th. 458; B. 226: 673; B. 334. [Icel. serkr a shirt; hring-, jārn-serkr a shirt of mail.] v. beadu-, heoru-,
here-, hilde-, leoþu-, līc-, under-serc (-serce).

bts

ch

med

OED

herenet
BT
here-net, -nett, es; n. A war-net, coat of mail, corslet, Beo. Th. 3110; B. 1553.

BTS

CH
herenet n. corslet, B1553.
MED

OED

herepād
BT
here-pād, e; f. A coat of mail, Beo. Th. 4508; B. 2258.

BTS

CH
herepād† f. corslet, coat of mail.

med

oed

heresyrce
bt

ch
heresyrce f. corslet, B1511

med

oed

hildeserce
bt
hilde-serce, an; f. A war-shirt, corslet, Elen. Kmbl. 468; El. 234.

bts

ch
hildeserce f. corslet, EL 234.
med

oed

hilde
bt
hild, e; f. [a poetical word] War, battle; pugna, prælium:-- In the Scandinavian mythology Hildr is the
name of one of the Valkyrias, and Grimm considers that the word occurs, denoting a person, in the Anglo-
Saxon poetry, e. g. gif mec hild nime. Beo. Th. 909; B. 452: 2967; B. 1481. v. Grmm. D. M. 392 sqq. Hild
sweðrode war ceased, Beo. Th. 1807; B. 901: 3180; B. 1585: 3698; B. 1847: Andr. Kmbl. 2840; An.
1422: Elen. Kmbl. 36; El. 18: 298; El. 149. Hyne Hetware hilde gehnǣgdon him the Hetwaras conquered
in battle, Beo. Th. 5825; B. 2916: 4159; B. 2076: 4586; B. 2298: Exon. 100a; Th. 378, 10; Deōr. 14:
Menol. Fox 493; Gn. C. 17: Apstls. Kmbl. 41; Ap. 21: Cd. 150; Th. 188, 3; Exod. 162. Nǣfre hit æt hilde
ne swāc manna ǣngum never had it failed in fight any man, Beo. Th. 2925; B 1460: 3322; 6. 1659: 5143;
B. 2575: 5361; B. 2684: Cd. 98; Th. 129, 25; Gen. 2149: Byrht. Th. 133, 24; By. 55: 135, 24; By. 123:
138, 20; By. 223: 140, 14; By. 324: 131, 15; By. 8: Wald. 6; Vald. 1. 4: Andr. Kmbl. 823; An. 412: Salm.
Kmbl. 320; Sal. 159: Fins. Th. 75; Fin. 37: Wald. 55; Vald. 1, 30: Exon. 79a; Th. 297, 5; Crä. 63: 104a;
Th. 395, 7; Rä. 15, 4: 120a; Th. 461, 17; Hö. 37: Cd. 95; Th. 124, 11; Gen. 2061: 155; Th. 193, 5; Exod.
241: Elen. Kmbl. 63; El. 32: 97; El. 49: 103; El, 52: 129; El. 65. Ongenþeōw hæfde Higelāces hilde
gefrunen Ongentheow had heard of Higelac's fighting, Beo. Th. 5897; B. 2952: 1299; B. 647: 3984; 3.
1990: @bt_b0536 Wald. 87; Vald. 2, 15: Exon. 16 a; Th. 35, 31; Cri. 566: Cd. 151; Th. 189, 3; Exod. 181:
167; Th. 209, 25; Exod. 504: Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 9; Jud. 251. Heardre hilde with hard fighting, Elen.
Kmbl. 165; El. 83: Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 36; Jud. 294. Fela ic gebād heardra hilda many hard battles have I
experienced, Fins. Th. 52; Fin. 26: Andr. Kmbl. 2980; An. 1493. [O. Sax. hild: Icel. hildr: O. H. Ger. hilt.
v. Grff. iv. 912.]

hringloca
BT
hring-loca, an; m. A coat of mail formed with rings, Byrht. Th. 136, 2; By. 145.

BTS

CH
hringloca m. coat of ring-mail, MA 145.
MED

OED

hring
BT
HRING, hrincg, es; m. A RING, circle, circuit, cycle, orb, globe, festoon :-- Āgymmed hrincg ungulus:
geheāfdod hringce samothracius: lytel hring anelus, Ælfc. Gl. 65; Som. 69, 30, 31, 49; Wrt. Voc. 40, 59,
60; 41, 6. Hringc ansa, Wrt. Voc. 66, 34: 284, 7. Hring fibula, legula, sertum, Cot. 85, 186, 190, Lye. Ān
fȳren hring globus ignis, Ors. 5, 10; Swt. 234, 3. Mon geseah ymbe ða sunnan swelce ān gylden hring
circulus ad speciem cælestis arcus orbem solis ambiit, 14; Swt. 248, 9. Ðæs seō hringc circulus [pupillæ],
Ælfc. Gl. 70; Som. 70, 64; Wrt. Voc. 42, 72. Se hring ealles geāres totius anni circulus, Bd. 4, 18; S. 586,
40. Hring ūtan ymbbearh the ring [armour formed of rings] protected him without, Beo. Th. 3011; B.
1503: 4513; B. 2260. Sunnan hring beāga beorhtast the rainbow [?], Exon. 60 a; Th. 219, 11; Ph. 305,
Ðone hālgan hringe beteldaþ flyhte on lyfte contrahit in cætum sese genus omne volantum, 60 b; Th. 221,
24; Ph. 339. Ðonne ðæt gecnāwaþ feōnd ðætte fira gehwylc on his hringe biþ fæste gefēged when the
devil knows that any man is fast fixed in his ring [fetters, chain or circle over which his power extends?],
97 a; Th. 362, 22; Wal. 40. Gim sceal on hringe standan the gem must stand in the ring, Menol. Fox 594;
Gn. C. 22. Syllaþ him hring on his hand date anulum in manum ejus, Lk. Skt. 15, 22. Seðe his geleāfan
hring mē lēt tō wedde. Homl. Swt. 7, 30. Dyde him of healse hring gyldenne doff'd from his neck a golden
ring, Beo. Th. 5611; B. 2809. Gewyrc ānne hring ymb ðone slite make a ring round the incision, L. M. 1.
45; Lchdm. i. 112, 1. Ðū geāres hring mid gyfe bletsast benedices coronæ anni benignitatis tuæ, Ps. Th.
64, 12. Ǣr sunne twelf mōnþa hringc ūtan ymbgān hæbbe, Guthl. 21; Gdwin. 96, 5. Ofer holmes hrincg
over the ocean's circuit, Cd. 69; Th. 84, 5; Gen. 1393. Hrincg ðæs heān landes, 137; Th. 172, 34; Gen.
2854. Wīngearda hringa[s] corimbi, Ælfc. Gl. 59; Som. 68, 11; Wrt. Voc. 38, 60. Hrægl and hringas
raiment and rings, Beo. Th. 2394; B. 1195. Hringa hyrde, 4482; B. 2245: 3018; B. 1507: 4680; B. 2345.
Heortan unhneāweste hringa gedāles the heart least niggardly in the giving of rings, Exon. 85 b; Th. 323,
4; Vīd. 73. Hæft mid hringa gesponne bound with the linked chain, Cd. 35; Th. 47, 17; Gen. 762: 19; Th.
24, 14; Gen. 377. Hringum gehrodene adorned with rings, Judth. 10; Thw. 21, 27; Jud. 37: Beo. Th. 2187;
B. 1091. Hringum gyrded, Exon. 129 b; Th. 497, 22; Rä. 87, 4. Hringan, 102 b; Th. 387, 8; Rä. 5, 2. Hē
wolde ðæs beornes beāgas gefecgan reāf and hringas, Byrht. Th. 136, 34; By. 161. Hringas dǣlan, Beo.
Th. 3944; B. 1970: 6061; B. 3034. Ða nigontȳnlīcan hringas rihtra Eāstrana and hēt fordilgian ða
gedwolan hringas feōwer and hundeahtatig geara circuit Paschæ decennovenales oblitteratis erroneis
octoginta et quatuor annorum circulis, Bd. 5, 21; S. 643, 26. [Icel. hringr a ring, ring of a coat of mail,
circle; O. H. Ger. hring circulus, orbis, spira, sphæra, bulla, corona, sertum, torques, vinculum, laqueus:
Ger. ring.] DER. bān-, bridels-, eāg-, eāh-, eār-hring. v. beāg.

loca
BT
loca, an; m. That which closes or shuts, a bar, bolt, lock, an enclosed place, locker :-- Hepse ł loca
clustella, serra, Hpt. Gl. 500. Ālȳsde leōda bearn of locan deōfla [hell], Elen. Kmbl. 362; El. 181. Under
helle cinn under līges locan, Exon. 31 b; Th. 99, 7; Cri. 1621 : 72 b; Th. 270, 32; Jul. 19. Se ðe healdeþ
locan who guards the lock, 8 a; Th. 2, 14; Cri. 19 : Salm. Kmbl. 371; Sal. 185. DER. bān-, brægn-, breōst-,
burg-, feorh-, ferhþ- ferþ-, fȳr-, fyrhþ-, gewit-, hearm-, heolstor-, hord-, hreðer-, hring-, nīþ-, þeōster-,
word-loca; v. loc.
hringnett
BT
hring-nett, es; n. A net-work of rings, a coat of mail formed of rings :-- Hringnet bǣron locene
leoþosyrcan, Beo. Th. 3783; B. 1889. [Cf. Icel. hring-kofl. -serkr, -skyrta a coat of mail; hring-ofinn
woven of rings, an epithet applied to such a coat.]

BTS

CH
hringnett n. ring-mail, B1889.

MED

OED

hring
nett
irenbyrne
bt
īren-byrne, an; f. An iron byrnie :-- Nāmon īrenbyrnan, heard swyrd hilted, and his helm, Beo. Th. 5965;
B. 2986.

bts
īren-byrne. Add: v. īsern-byrne.

ch

med

oed

iren
BTs
iren-smiþ, es; m. A blacksmith :-- ' Hēt ic hider lǣdan Stephanum þone īrensmið (ferrarium)'. . .
Stephanus se īrensmið wæs forðfēred . . . seō gefremednes Stephanes deāðes þæs īrensmiðes, Gr. D. 318,
10-15. [Icel. jārn-smiðr.] v. īsen-smiþ.
CH

MED

3. (a) A weapon or weapon head made of iron or steel; coll. weapons; ~ and stel, arms; ne
(neither) ~ ne stel, no weapon whatsoever; with ~ and fir, with killing and burning, with
complete devastation; (b) armor; a piece of armor; ~ and stel; ?also, an iron shirt worn for
penance.

OED

byrne
isenbyrne
bt
īsern-byrne, an ; f. An iron byrnie or corslet :-- Hē him of dyde īsernbyrnan, Beo. Th. 1347 ; B. 671. v.
īren-byrne.

bts

CH
īsenbyrne (īsern-) f. iron corslet, B671.

MED

oed

isen
byrne
loeþusyrce
bt
leoþu-sirce, an; f. A coat of mail :-- Locene leoþosyrcan, Beo. Th. 3014; B. 1505: 3784; B. 1890.

bts

ch
leoðusyrce† f. corslet.
med

oed

loeþu
bt

ch
leoðu I. f. retinue, following? RIM 14 (GK).
II. v. liS.

med

oed

syrce
līcsyrce
bt
līc-sirce, an; f. A coat of mail, Beo. Th. 1105; B. 550.

ch
Iīcsyrce f. corslet, B550.

med

oed

līc
bt
līc, es; n. A body [living or dead] generally the latter; the word remains in lich-gate, lyke-wake :-- Līc oððe
līchama corpus, Ælfc. Gr. 9, 32; Som. 12, 16. Līc ǣgðer ge cuces ge deāðes corpus; līc oððe hreāw funus;
līc oððe hold cadaver, Wrt. Voc. 85, 51-54: 49, 25. Næs nān hūs on eallum Egipta lande ðe līc inne ne
lǣge neque erat domus, in qua non jaceret mortuus, Ex. 12, 30. Ealle ða hwīle ðe ðæt līc biþ inne, ðǣr
sceal beōn gedrync and plega, Ors. 1, 1; Swt. 20, 25. Ðǣr ðæs hǣlendes ne ālēd wæs ubi positum fuerat
corpus iesu, Jn. Skt. 20, 12. Cwæþ ðæt his līc wǣre leōht and scēne, Cd. 14; Th. 17, 25; Gen. 265. Ðendan
bu somod līc and sāwle lifgan mōte whilst both soul and body may live together, Exon. 27 a; Th. 81, 21;
Cri. 1327. Līc and gǣst, 46 b; Th. 160, 8; Gū. 940: 50 a; Th. 172, 25; Gū. 1149. Næs ūre gemǣled ne līc
ne leoþu neither body nor limbs were marked by the fire, 74 a; Th. 278, 3; Jul. 592. Līc sāre gebrocen,
bānhūs blōdfāg, Andr. Kmbl. 2808; An. 1406. Ðē is gedāl witod līces and sāwle, Cd. 43; Th. 57, 20; Gen.
931. Sweostor mīn līces mǣge my sister, kinswoman according to the flesh, 89; Th. 110, 4; Gen. 1833.
Līces lustas lusts of the flesh, Exon. 71 b; Th. 267, 2; Jul. 409: 26 b; Th. 79, 28; Cri. 1297. Gang tō
ciricean tō ðæs hālgan Ōswaldes līce and site ðǣr ingredere ecclesiam, et accedens ad sepulcrum Osualdi,
ibi reside, Bd. 3, 12; S. 537, 9. Stōd se biscop æt ðam līce, 4, 11; S. 580, 13: L. Edg. c. 65; Th. ii. 258, 13.
Bæþ wið ðam miclan līce a bath for elephantiasis, L. M. 1, 32; Lchdm. ii. 78, 18. Mynte ðæt hē gedǣlde
ānra gehwylces līf wið līce meant to part the life of each one from the body, Beo. Th. 1470; B. 733. Hē
ðæt andweorc of Adames līce āleoþode, Cd. 9; Th. 11, 18; Gen. 177. Hē sceāf reāf of līce, 76; Th. 94, 21;
Gen. 1565. Forþ gewāt Cham of līce Ham died, 79; Th. 97, 35; Gen. 1623. Hī his līc nāmon and hine on
byrgene lēdon, Mk. Skt. 6, 29: Beo. Th. 4261; B. 2127: L. Eth. v. 12; Th. i. 308, 5: vi. 21; Th. i. 320, 6.
Ðæs mynstres brōðra dydon sce. Cūþberhtes līc of eorþan, and hī ðæt gemētton swā gesund swā hē ðāgyt
lifde, Shrn. 82, 14. Se ūs līf forgeaf, leomu, līc and gǣst, Exon. 19 a; Th. 48, 25; Cri. 777. His [the
Phœnix] līc, 59 b; Th. 216, 14; Ph. 268. Hē wearp hine ðā on wyrmes līc, Cd. 25; Th. 31, 26; Gen. 491.
Eowre līc sceolon sweltan on ðisum wēstene vestra cadavera jacebunt in solitudine, Num. 14, 32. Ðǣr
ðara arcebisceopa līc bebyrigde syndon ubi archiepiscopi Cantiæ sepeliri solent, Bd. 4, 1; S. 565, 5.
Forleōsan līca gehwilc ðara ðe līfes gāst fæðmum þeahte, Cd. 64; Th. 77, 26; Gen. 1281. Līcu cadavera,
Hymn. Surt. 52, 27. [Goth. leik: O. Sax. O. Frs. līk: Icel. līk: Dan. lig: Swed. lik: O. H. Ger. līh: Ger.
leiche.] DER. eofor-, wyrm-līc.

bts
līc. Add: I. the living body of a man or animal :-- Hī wǣron mid olfendes hǣrum tō līce gescrȳdde, Hml.
Th. ii. 506, 23: Hml. S. 31, 333. Hī mid hǣran hī gescryddon tō līce, 12, 36. Ðȳ læs hiē mid ðȳ tōle ðæt
hāle līc gewierden, Past. 365, 11. Hine lyst bet þaccian and cyssan ðone ōðerne on bær līc, Solil. H. 42, 4.
Þa men forbrēdan and weorpan hi an wildedeora lie, Bt. 38, I ; F. 194, 31. I a. the body in contrast with
the soul or vital principle of which it is the seat :-- Sāwel mid līce, Ph. 525. Seō eādge sāwl hiō wið þām
līce gedǣleð, Cri. 1668. Gedǣlan līf wið līce, B. 2423 : Ap. 83. Of līce aldor onsendan, Gen. 2789. Ānra
gehwylc hafað ætgædre bū līc and sāwle, Cri. 1037. I b. the corporeal or material nature or state of man,
the material body and its properties, tie flesh. (l) of kinship :-- Þū sægdest bast Sarra þīn sweostor wǣre,
līces mǣge (kinswoman according to the flesh). (2) of sins of the sense :-- Fyrene gestǣlan, līces leahtor,
Gū. 1045. II. a dead body: -- Gewāt seō sāwul of ðām līchamon tō Gode . . . His līc wearð gesewen sōna
on wuldre, beorhtre ðonne glæs, Hml. Th. ii. 518, 10. Open wæs þæt eorðærn, æðelinges līc onfēng feōres
gǣst, Hö. 19. Mīn līc scyle on moldærn molsnad weorðan, Ph. 563. Wacodon menn swā swā hit
gewunelīc is ofer ān dead līc, Hml. S. 21, 290. Gif man ǣnig līc of rihtscryftscīre elles hwǣr lecge, Ll. Th.
i. 368, 7. III. the trunk in contrast with the limbs :-- Siððan līc and leomu and þes līfes gǣst āsundrien
somwist hyra þurh feorhgedāl, Gū. 1149. Leomu līc somod and līfes gǣst, Ph. 513. [v. N. E. D. lich.]

syrce
searonet
bt
searu-net[t], es; n. I. an armour-net, or a net ingeniously wrought, a coat of mail:--On him byrne scān,
searonet seowed smiþes orþancum, Beo. Th. 816; B. 406. II. a net of treachery or guile, a net (metaph.), a
snare, wile:--Mē elþeōdige inwitwrāsne, searonet seōþaþ, Andr. Kmbl. 127; An. 64. Searonettum beseted
beset with snares, 1885; An. 945.
bts

ch

med

oed

serc
wælnett
bt
wæl-net[t], es; n. The net of destruction (?), Cd. Th. 190, 20; Exod. 202.

bts

ch

med

oed

wæl
bt
wæl, es; a. I. in a collective sense, the slain, the dead, a number of slain, (a) generally of death in battle :--
Wæl feōl on eorðan, Byrht. Th. 135, 31; By. 126: 140, 45; By. 303. Ðæs wæles wæs geteald six hund
manna mid ðām fȳrenum flānum ofsceotene of those who died they counted six hundred shot with the
fiery arrows, Homl. Th. i. 506, 6. Ðā hē his brōðor siege ofāxode, ðā fērde hē tō ðam wæle his līc sēcende,
ii. 358, 6. Ðā gelæhton his gebrōðra his līc of ðam wæle, Homl. Skt. ii. 25, 673. Ðā sōhte hē on ðam wæle
his līc, Bd. 4, 22; S. 591, 17. Hē on wæle lǣge, Byrht. Th. 139, 65; By. 279: 140, 39; By. 300. Hit næs nā
gesǣd hwæt Pirruses folces gefeallen wǣre, for ðon hit næs þeāw ðæt mon ǣnig wæl on ða healfe rīmde
ðe wieldre wæs (mos est, ex ea parte quae vicerit occisorum non commemorare numerum), Ors. 4, 1; Swt.
156, 21. Ǣr hē ðæt wæl bereāfian mehte, 3, 9; Swt. 128, 9: Beo. Th. 2429; B. 1212: 6047; B. 3027. On
wæl feallan to die in battle, Cd. Th. 123, 2; Gen. 2038. On wæll fyllan to kill in battle, Bd. 1, 12; S. 481,
24. ¶ as object of verbs of slaying :-- Ðǣr wæs micel wæl geslægen on gehwæþre hond many were killed
on both sides, Chr. 871; Erl. 74, 11: 833; Erl. 64, 20. Ne wearð wæl māre folces gefylled, 937; Erl. 115,
14. Ðǣr was ungemetlīc wæl geslægen Norþanhymbra, sume binnan, sume būtan, 867; Erl. 72, 15: Ors. 2,
5; Swt. 80, 26. Hī him mycel wæl on geslōgan magnam eorum multitudinem sternens, Bd. 1, 12; S. 481,
30, Hiē ðǣr ðæt mǣste wæl geslōgon on hǣþnum herige ðe wē secgan hiērdon ōþ ðisne andweardan dæg,
Chr. 851; Erl. 68, 4. Hē menigfeald wæl felde and slōh, Guthl. 2; Gdwin. 14, 7. (b) in other connections :--
Ðā geāt mon ðæt ātter ūt on ðone sǣ, and raþe ðæs ðǣr com upp micel wæl deādra fisca, Ors. 6, 3; Swt.
258, 17. II. a single corpse, a slain person :-- Hē mē habban wile dreōre fāhne, gif mec deāð nimeþ, byreþ
blōdig wæl, Beo. Th. 900; B. 448. Ðonne walu feōllon, 2089; B. 1042. Crungon walo, Exon. Th. 477, 17;
Ruin. 26. III. in an abstract sense, (a) of destruction in war, slaughter, carnage :-- Wæl on gefeohte
strages, Ælfc. Gr. 9, 27; Zup. 53, 5. Mycel wæl (wælfill, MS. A.) gewearð on Brytene æt Wōdnesbeorge,
Chr. 592; Erl. 19, 34. Hē hī on gelīcnysse ðæs trāiscan wæles (caedis) wundade, Bd. 3, 1; S. 523, 30. Mid
grimme wæle and herige saeva caede, 4, 15; S. 583, 26. Of wæle strage, occisione, Hpt. Gl. 427, 60. (b) in
other connections, destruction :-- Com mycel wæl and monncwyld godcundlīce gesended supervenit
clades divinitus missa, Bd. 4, 3; S. 567, 10. Hē hī fram ðam mānfullan wæle (clade; destruction by
famine) generede, 4, 14; S. 582, 27. Wæle strage; occisione (destruction of the soul by sin. v. Ald. 7),
Hpt. Gl. 415, 22. [Þat wæl (heap, 2nd MS.) wes þe more, Laym. 4111. He lette al þæt wel weorpen an ane
dich, 6427. Ic heo wulle biwinnen oðer an wæle liggen, 9497. O. Sax. wal (in wal-dād): O. H. Ger. wal
strages, clades: Icel. valr the slain.] v. ecg-, ungemet-wæl.

bts

ch

med

(a) A corpse, dead body;

(b) coll. those who have fallen in battle or have been massacred, the slain; ?also, the scene of a
bloody battle [1st quot.];

(c) slaughter, destruction, bloodshed; islen (ofslen) muchel ~, to bring about carnage, kill a huge
number;

oed

nett

GREAVES
bān(ge)beorg
bt
bān-beorgas; pl. m. Bone defences, greaves; ossium præsidia, ocreæ, Cot. 17: 145.

bts
bān-beorgas; m. Substitute: bān-be(o)rg, e; f. A greave:--Bān&dash-uncertain;beorgum ocreis, Wrt. Voc.
ii. 63, 31. Bānberge ocreas, 97, 35. [O. H. Ger. pein-perga ocreas.] v. bān-gebeorg.

ch
bānbeorge f. leg-armour, greaves, WW.

med

oed

bān
(ge)beorg
bt
ge-beorg, -beorh, -berg; gen. -beorges, -beorhges; n. [ge-, and beorg a protection, refuge] A defence,
protection, safety, refuge; præsĭdium, refŭgium, tutāmen, tuĭtio :-- Leōfsunu ahōf bord to gebeorge
Leofsunu raised up his buckler for defence, Byrht. Th. 138, 64; By. 245 : 135, 40; By. 131. Britwalum to
gebeorge for the protection of the Brito-Welsh, Chr.189; Erl. 9, 26 : Bd. 1, 12; S. 480, 32.

bts
ge-beorg. Add :-- Geberg refugium, Wrt. Voc. ii. 118, 74. I. verbal abstract. (1) protection, saving of an
object :-- Bið sē gebeorges þe bet wyrðe, þe hē for neōde dyde   hē dyde. Ll. Th. i. 412, 13.
Gebeorhges, 328, 24. For þǣra gebeorge . . . ðe hē habban wyle gehealden and geholpen, Wlfst. 86, 18.
Maria wæs Jōsepe beweddod for micclum gebeorge (to secure effectual protection), Hml. Th. i. 40, 34.
On gebeorge beōn wudewum to be protecting widows, 118, 18. His folce tō gebeorge for the protection of
his people, Hml. S. 25, 679. Tō gebeorge and to friðe eallum leōdscipe, Ll. Th. i. 276, 21. Feōre to
gebeorge to save his life, 330, 12. Sendan beāgas wið gebeorge to send treasure in return for safety, i. e.
to buy off attack, By. 31. Gebeorh praesidium i. adiutorium (Dei laturi), An. Ox. 2260. Begitað hī ðe māre
gebeorh æt Godes dōme, Wlfst. 300, 14: Ll. Th. ii. 314, 16. Ne bið þǣr fultum nān  wið þā biteran þing
gebeorh mæge fremman auxilium nullus rebus praestabit amaris, Dōm. L. 223 : Wlfst. 139, 14. (2) saving
from doing wrong (?) :-- Besceāwige hē ā his āgene tȳdder-nesse and þurh þæt gebeorh sȳ ne forbrȳte hē
nā þæt tōcnysede hreōd let him ever consider his own weakness and by that means let there be protection
(let him be saved) from crushing the bruised reed (the Latin is : Suam fragilitatem semper suspectus sit,
memineritque calamum quassatum non conterendum), R. Ben. 121, 5. II. that which protects. (1) of
persons :-- þū eart min trymnes and mīn gebeorh foriitudo mea et firmamentum meum es tu, Ps. Th. 30, 4.
Gebeorg refugium, Ps. Spl. C. 58, 19. Geācsode se wræcca Sce Gūþlāces forðfōre; for þon hē āna ǣr þon
wæs hys gebeorh and frōfor (his refuge and comfort), Guth. 94, 4. (2) of places :-- Gebeorge praesidio (in
solo liberae mentis praesidio servatur), An. Ox. 5395. (3) of things :-- Rand sceal on scylde, fæst fingra
gebeorh, Gn. C. 38. [O. L. Ger. gi-berg theca : O. H. Ger. ge-berg aerarium.] v. bān-breōst-, feorh-, fyr-,
rand-, sceonc-gebeorh ; gebyrg

ch
beorg m. mountain, hill, Lk,AO;Mdi :
mound, tumulus, 'barrow,' burial place,
Æ,Lcd.
+beorg n. protection, defence, refuge, W.
beorgælfen f. oread.

bānrift
bt
bān-rift, bān-ryft; pl. n. Bone coverings, greaves; tibialia, ossium velamen, ocreæ, Cot. 174. v. bān-
beorgas.

bts
bān-rift, es; n. A greave:--Baanrift, -ryft tibialis, Txts. 102, 1031. Bānrift, Wrt. Voc. i. 289, 15. v. rift in
Dict.

ch
bānrift (v) n. leggings, leg-armour, greaves
GL,WW (-rist).

med

oed

scancgebeorg
bt

ch
scancgebeorg f. leg-greave, WW535".
med

oed

sceanca
bt
sceanca, an ; m. I. a shank, shin, the leg from the knee to the foot:-- Sceanca crus, Ælfc. Gr. 9, 33 ; Som.
12, 22: Wrt. Voc. ii. 137, 21: i. 71, 56. Scance(-a?) crus, sceanca[n] crura, 44, 68. Gif se sconca biþ þyrel
beneoðan cneōwe, L. Alf. pol. 63; Th. i. 96, 16. Gif monnes sconca biþ of āslagen wið ðæt cneōu, 72 ; Th.
i. 98, 19. Nim blæces hundes deādes ðone swȳðran fōtes sceancan (fōtscancan, MS. B. ), Lchdm. i. 362,
27. Sconcan crura, Wrt. Voc. i. 65, 41. Scancan, ii. 17, 43. Sceancan crura, scancan tibiae, i. 283, 69-70.
Lǣcedōmas wið scancena sāre, and gif scancan forade synd. Lchdm. ii. 6, 10. Sindon ða scancan (of the
Phenix) scyllum biweaxen crura tegunt squamae, Exon. Th. 219, 20; Ph. 310. Scancan tibias, Hpt. Gl.
482, 64: Kent. Gl. 982. Sconca[n?] suras, Wrt. Voc. ii. 93, 5. Ðæt man forbrǣce hyra sceancan (crura).
Jn. Skt. 19, 31, 32, 33. Se sceocca gewrāð his sceancan, Homl. Skt. i. 11, 223. Sconcan, Salm. Kmbl. 203;
Sal. 101. II. the upper part of the leg (= þeōhsceanca):-- Ic wille ðæt gē fēdaþ ān earm Engliscmon . . .
Āgyfe mon hine . . . ān scone spices oððe ān ram weorðe iiii. peningas, L. Ath. i. prm.; Th. i. 198, 7.
[Dan. Swed. skank a shank: cf. Germ. schenkel.] v. earm-, fōt-, hōh-, þeōh-sceanca.

gebeorg
scinhosu
bt
scin-hosu, e; f. A shin-hose, a covering for the lower part of the leg, a greave:-- Scinhose ocreis. Hpt. Gl.
521, 5.

bts

ch
selnhosu f. greave, OEG.

med

oed
SHIELD

bōhscyld
bt

ch
bōhscyld rn. shoulder shield, EC 226'.

med

oed

boh
bt
boh. l. bōh, and add: [a weak form bōga occurs, Wrt. Voc. i. 33, 16, and also weak forms of g. pl.] I. a
shoulder of an animal :-- Boog armus, Wrt. Voc. ii. 100, 82. Bog armum, 7, 17. Ðone suīðran bōgh, Past.
81, 19. Gif hors on hricge oððe on þām bōgum āwyrd sȳ, Lch. i, 290, 10. Þegnas mǣton mīlpaðas meāra
bōgum, Exod. 171. II. bough of a tree, sprig, sprout of a plant :-- Bōg frondus, Wrt. Voc. ii. 151, 24. Bōh
ramus, i. 80, 5. Bōga, 33, 16. Pīntreōwes bōh pini stipitem (.i. UNCERTAIN ramum), An. Ox. 2223.
Bōgas frondes, s. dicuntur quod ferant virgultas, Wrt. Voc. ii. 151, 8. Bōga stipitum, frondium, An. Ox.
3084: 7, 83. Bōgana, 1557: 2457. Bōgum comis vel ramis, Wrt. Voc. ii. 132, 12. Hyre (leechwort) stela
byð mid geþūfum bōgum, Lch. i. 248, 18.  ōðer cyn (of southernwood) is greāton bōgum and swȳþe
smælon leāfon, 250, 19. Wæs Aarones gyrd gemētt grōwende mid bōgum, Hml. Th. ii. 8, 15. Hit bið
unnyt ðæt mon hwelces yfles bōgas snǣde, buton mon wille ðā wyrtruman forceorfan, Past. 222, 15.
Bōgas wīngerdes propagines uitis, An. Ox. 2016: Hpt. Gl. 496, 76. v. wīn-geard-bōh.

ch
bog m. arm, shoulder, Æ; CP :' bough,' twig,
branch, Mt; CP : offspring, [būgan]

med

2.

(a) An arm or leg of a person; a leg of a boar or a horse; (b) a branch of coral; one of the smaller
roots of a plant; a nerve or vein branching off from a larger nerve or vein; (c) a sub-division of a
virtue or a vice; (d) an offspring, descendant.
oed

scyld
bt
scyld, e: scyldu (o); indecl. f. I. guilt, sin, crime, fault:--Hē sume māndǣde gefremede ðā seō scyld ðā tō
his heortan hwearf ðā onscunode hē hī hefelīce sceleris aliquid commiserat, quod commissum, ubi ad cor
suum rediit, gravissime exhorruit, Bd. 4, 25; S. 599, 34. Sitte siō scyld (the killing of a slave) on him, L.
Alf. 17; Th. i. 48, 15. On eōw scyld siteþ, Exon. Th. 131, 2; Gū. 449. Is Euan scyld eal forpyuded, 7, 6;
Cri. 97. Hē his scylde forgyfenysse bæd veniam reatus postulans, Bd. 3, 22; S. 553, 33. Ða byrðenne suā
micelre scylde tanti reatus pondera, Past. 2, 2; Swt. 31, 14. Būtan scylde sine culpa, 3, 1; Swt. 33, 16: L.
H. E. 12; Th. i. 32, 9. Hī būton ǣlcere scylde (without being guilty of any crime) wurdon fordōne, Bt. 29,
2; Fox 104, 30. Æt openre scylde flagrante delicto, L. In. 37; Th. i. 124, 23. Hafaþ ðæt mōd hwylcehugu
scyldo habet animus aliquem reatum, Bd. l, 27; S. 496, 42. Synna, scylda piacula, Wrt. Voc. ii. 66, 78.
Mīne scylde delicta mea, Ps. Th. 68, 6: Ps. Surt. 58, 13. Scylða, Past. 32, 2; Swt. 211, 20. Scelda, Ps. C.
45. Brōðres schyldo fratris vitia, Mt. Kmbl. p. 15, 5. Āscyred scylda gehwylcre, deōpra firena, Elen.
Kmbl. 2624; El. 1313: 937; El. 470. Hwīlum biþ gōd wærlīce tō mīðanne his hiēremonna scylda (vitia),
Past. 21, 1; Swt. 151, 9. II. a debt, awe:--Ryhtlīcor cweðan ðæt wē him gielden scylde ðonne wē him
mildheortnesse dōn justitiae debitum potius solvimus, quam misericordiae opera implemus, 45, 1; Swt.
335, 19. Āgefnæ beōn ða scylde reddi debitum, Mt. Kmbl. Rush. 28, 25. Hē ða scyld forlēt wið hine
debitum dimisit ei, 27: 30. [Sculd scelus, Wrt. Voc. i. 95, 74. O. Sax. skuld a crime; a due: O. L. Ger.
sculd: O. Frs. skeide, schuld, schild: O. H. Ger. sculd, sculda causa, facinus, noxa, injuria, crimen,
debitum, meritum: Icel. skuld, skyld a due, tax; sake.] v. deāþ-, frum-, ge-, god-, mān-, nīd-scyld.

bts
scyld. [The word is masculine in the following :-- Scyld (delictum) mīnne cūthorn;ne ic dyde, Ps. Rdr. 31,
5. Scyldas delicta, 24, 7: 58, 13.] I. add :-- Þ manna scyldu (-e, v. l.) sīn gewītnode ut culpae carnalium
puniantur, Gr. D. 323, 13. Scylda, 328, 10. v. un-scyld.

ch
scield (e, i, y) rn. 'shield.' protector, Bl,Ph :
(±) protection, defence, VPs; AO.CP : part
of a bird's plumage? Pii308.
scield- v. also scild-.

med

1.

(a) A shield; ~ of devis, a shield bearing a heraldic device; (b) in phrases: ~ and banere (target),
~ ne targe, ~ or bokelere; ~ and (ne) spere, sheldes and speres, spere and (ne) ~; ~ and
swerd, swerd ne ~, swerd(es and sheld(es; (c) under ~, bearing a shield, provided with a shield;
beren (dressen, weien, welden, weren) ~; hitten on (smiten upon, smiten thurgh) ~, to strike
(sb.) on (through) his shield; riven ~, cleven ~ in sonder; smiten in (smiten upon, heuen on) ~;
(d) a shield used as a stretcher; (e) a soldier, shield-bearer; (f) in fig. expressions: abiden ~, to
withstand (someone's) onslaught; iwelden mid ~, capture (a city); reisen up ~ ayenes, make war
on (a city), besiege; shuderen under ~, be afraid to begin an argument; tornen ~, relax (one's)
vigilance; (g) in cpds. & combs.: ~ berer, a soldier, guard; ~ makere, one who makes shields;
also as erroneous transl. for ~ berer [quot.: a1382]; sheldes bord, shield-wood, shield.

oed

BORD
bt
BORD, es; n. I. a BOARD, plank; tabula sectilis, tabula :-- Bord tabula, Wrt. Voc. 63, 80. Borda gefēg a
joining of boards; commissura, R. 6 2. Hwīlum ic bordum sceal heāfodleās behlȳðed licgan sometimes I
must lie on boards deprived of head, Exon. 104 a; Th. 395, 18; Rä. 15, 9. Wirc ðē ǣnne arc of aheāwenum
bordum make thee an ark of planed planks, Gen. 6, 14; fac tibi arcam de lignis levigatis, Vulg. II. what is
made of a board,-A table, shield; mensa, clypeus :-- Ic on wuda stonde, bordes on ende I stand upon
wood, at the end of the table, Exon. 129 a; Th. 496, 15, 18; Rä. 85, 15, 16. Geweorþe bord oððe mēse
heora befōran him on grine fiat mensa eorum coram ipsis in laqueum, Ps. Spl. T. 68, 27. Scip sceal
genægled, scyld gebunden, leōht bord a ship shall be nailed, a shield bound, the light shield [lit. board],
Exon. 90 b; Th. 339, 16; Gn. Ex. 95: Byrht. Th. 134, 67; By. 110: Fins. Th. 58; Fin. 29. He fȳsde forþ flān
genehe: hwīlon he on bord sceāt, hwīlon beorn tǣsde he poured forth his arrows abundantly: sometimes
he shot on the shield, sometimes he pierced the warrior, Byrht. Th. 139, 46; By. 270: Beo. Th. 5041; B.
2524: Cd. 156; Th. 193, 28; Exod. 253. Ðǣr wæs borda gebrec there was clash of shields, Elen. Kmbl.
227; El. 114: Beo. Th. 4510; B. 2259. Beraþ bord fōr breōstum bear shields before their breasts Judth. 11;
Thw. 24, 16; Jud. 192: 12; Thw. 26, 9; Jud. 318. He mid bordum hēt wyrcan ðone wīhagan he
commanded to raise with the shields the fence of war, Byrht. Th. 134, 49; By 101; Andr. Kmbl. 2412; An.
1207. III. the board, covering or deck of a ship, the ship itself; tabulatum, stega = στέγη, constratum, navis
:-- Hȳ twegen sceolon habban gomen on borde, in sīdum ceōle they two shall have pastime on board, in
the spacious ship, Exon. 92 a; Th. 345, 5; Gn. Ex. 183. He drugaþ his ār on borde he draws his oar on
board, 92 a; Th. 345, 15; Gn. Ex. 188. Ofer ceōles bord from the vessel's deck, Exon. 20 b; Th. 54, 2; Cri.
862. Lǣd under earce bord eaforan ðīne lead thy children under the covering of the ark, Cd. 67; Th. 80,
23; Gen. 1333: 67; Th. 82, 4; Gen. 1357. Bord oft onfēng ȳða swengas the ship often received the blows of
the waves, Elen. Kmbl. 476; El. 238. Ic wille eall acwellan ða be-ūtan beōþ earce bordum I will destroy
all who shall be without the boards of the ark or all who are not in the ark or ship, Cd. 67; Th. 81, 33;
Gen. 1354. IV. with the prepositions innan and ūtan governing the genitive case, at home and abroad;
domi et foris :-- Hie sibbe innan bordes gehiōldon they preserved peace at home [lit. inside the boundary],
Past. pref; Hat. MS. Man ūtan bordes wīsdōm hieder on lond sōhte one from abroad [lit. outside the
boundary] sought wisdom in this land, Past. pref; Hat. MS. [Wyc. boord: R. Brun. bord: R. Glouc. bord,
borde: Laym. bord, beord, burd: Orm. bord, borde: O. Sax. bord, m: Frs. boerd, bord, m: O. Frs. bord, m:
Dut. bord, boord, m: Ger. bord, m. and n: M. H. Ger. bort: O. H. Ger. bort, borti, borto, m: Goth. fotu-
baurd, n. a foot-stool: Dan. bord, n: Swed. bord, m: Icel. borð, n: Fr. bord, m: Span. It. bordo, m: M. Lat.
bordus: Wel. bwrdh, bord: Corn. bord, f: Ir. Gael. bord, m: Armor. bourz.] DER. bleō-bord, fāmig-, gūþ-,
hilde-, hleō-, nægled-, þryþ-, wǣg-, wīg-, ȳþ-.

bts
bord. Add: I. a board: -- Borcla gefēg commissura. Wrt. Voc. i. 39, 65. II. side of a ship, board (in
larboard) :-- Hī wurpon heora waru ofor bord, Hml. Th. i. 246, 2, 9.
ch
bord n. 'beard,' plank, Æ,Gen : table, Ps :
side of a ship, Gen : ship, Elfln : shield, EL.

med
BORD

1.

(a) A board, a plank

(a)  (1228) in Gras Eng.Cust.Syst.  157:  C gross borde, iiii d. C minute borde, ii d.  (1281-2)

Expense R.Edw.I in Archaeol.16   42:  Eidem pro grossis clavis & minutis bordis &
lathis.  (1286) Wardrobe Acc.de Clare in Archaeol.70   29:  Item, In Bordis emptis ad faciendum
vnum Almarium in garderoba, xvj d.  (1297) *Acc.Exch.(PRO) 6/22 [OD col.]  :  Borda de
Eastland.  c1300 SLeg.Edm.Abp.(LdMisc 108)   345:  Stif ase ani hard bord, hire hond bi-cam a-
non.  (?c1300) Sub.R.Lynn in Nrf.Archaeol.1   347:  In bordis de Fir & in Bordis de Cheyne,
xxxiij li.  (1307) Doc.Finchale in Sur.Soc.6   p.ii:  Item, centum de bordis de Estland.  (c1325)
Recipe Painting(1) in Archaeol.J.1 (Hrl 2253)   64:  Riht quicliche tak a bord other a ston ant
keover hit.  c1330(?a1300) Tristrem (Auch)   1952:  Þe bord he fond of tvi3t.  (1333) *Acc.de
Weston (PRO)   469.15.m.1:  Pro vi bord de quercu.  (1366-7) Doc.Finchale in Sur.Soc.6  
p.lxxii:  Et in ix(xx) Hestlandborde emptis apud Novum Castrum..Et in sarracione meremii cum
bordis.  (1371) Fabric R.Yk.Min.in Sur.Soc.35   8:  Et in cc de waynscot bod emptis..48
s.  (a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   4.139:  Mount Etna..undede þe bordes [vr. burdes; L
tabulas] of schippes þat come þere nygh.  (c1390) Chaucer CT.Mil.(Manly-Rickert)  
A.3440:  An hole he fond ful lowe vpon a bord.  (1393) Acc.Exped.Der.in Camd.n.s.52   157/24-
9:  Pro ij C weynescotes bordez..pro ij C x bordez.  (a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)  
250a/a:  A longe schyngul and brode cloue wiþ ax or wiþ sawe planed..and such bord is nedeful
to hilynge of houses, ffor of such bordes is table made and oþer buldynge..arrayed.  c1400(?
a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)   6405:  Þe face hij han playne and hard, Als it were an okes
bord.  (1423) Doc.Brewer in Bk.Lond.E.  159/606:  Item, CC & xvj Feet of okene bordes & ij
bordes of Elme for Shelves.  (1428-9) Rec.St.Mary at Hill   71:  Also for a bord in gretynges
hous for a steyer, iiij d. ob.  (c1437) Acc.St.Michael Oxf.in OAST 78   40:  For iiii burds of
elme.  (1443) Acc.St.Mary Thame in BBOAJ 8   30:  For ij dorys: bords, hokys, and thystys, and
nayle, xv d.  a1450(c1410) Lovel. Grail (Corp-C 80)   28.450:  A spyndele was there schoten
forth Ryht thorwh the bordis Of the bed.  (1454-5) Acc.St.Ewen in BGAS 15   159:  Item, for
naylys & bordes to the Shop Wyndowe.  ?a1500 Lndsb.Nominale (Lndsb)   807/33:  Hic aser: a
borde.  

2.

An object made of boards

(a)  (a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)   250a/a:  A Borde..In þe þridde manere..is a þynne

plaunke and playne and þer Inne beþ lettres y write wiþ coloures.  a1400(a1325) Cursor (Vsp
A.3)   16684:  Abouen his hefd..a bord was festen plate, þar-on was þe titel writen.  a1400
Pep.Gosp.(Pep 2498)   98/11:  Abouen þe croice dude Pylate write vpon a boorde Ebru, Gru, &
Latyne.  c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)   640:  Him wald he..knok with his tablis, þat al
to-brest wald þe bordis.  a1500 *Nicod.(4) (Hrl 149:Hulme)   262a:  Pylat made wryte vppon a
lytel borde yn Ebrew, Grew and Latin.  

(b)  (1400) Will York in Sur.Soc.4   260:  Lego..servo meo..unum platyng-borde, cum uno strayte
& hawetys, quæ pertinent arti, & vj duodenas mostir bordes & vj brade bordes.  

(c)  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   30590:  Ich habbe..i-broht breden alre deorest þat ich
auere an æi borde beren bi-uoren kinge.  

(d)  c1350 When þat Iesus (Bod 425)   44:  And þar bordes openand, [G]iftes to him bede þai
þore, Golde [etc.].  

3.

A table: (a) a household table of any kind

(a)  c1325 Ichot a burde in boure (Hrl 2253)   72:  Hire loue me lustnede vch word ant beh him
to me ouer bord.  c1400 GGuy(1) (Tbr E.7)   221:  Þan sat þai all opon a burd þe bed
biside.  a1425(a1382) WBible(1) (Corp-O 4)   Ex.25.26:  Thow shalt putte hem in the foure
corners of the same bord, bi eche feet.  ?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris angl.25)   108a/b:  Þere was
leyde forth a borde [L mensa] longer þan the pacient, and at eyþer ende þere was fastened a
pyler.  (1433) Reg.Chichele in Cant.Yk.S.42 (Lamb 69)   483:  Lego..unum
faldyngborde.  (1442) Invent.Gild in PSAL ser.2.5   124:  Item j foleyn borde. Item iij cofurs.  ?
c1450(?a1400) Wycl.Clergy HP (Lamb 551)   380:  A goode man and his wyfe proferid to
hym..a lytille soler, a bedde, a borde, a chaire [etc.].  (1462) Will York in Sur.Soc.30   261:  It is
my will that my sister have.. stoles and burds to hir plesyng.  

4a.

(a) A dining table

(a)  a1225(?OE) Vsp.A.Hom.(Vsp A.22)   241:  Hit was ibroht..to þes hahes hlafordes

borde.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   3314:  Inoh he hauet on þirti to þirngen to
borde.  a1225 Wint.Ben.Rule (Cld D.3)   113/28:  Þære abbodesse bord sceal beon 3emene
þearfum & ælþeodu3um mannum.  c1230(?a1200) *Ancr.(Corp-C 402)   88b:  Gredi hundes
stondeð biuore þe bord.  c1275(?a1216) Owl & N.(Clg A.9)   479:  Þat ech god man his frond
icnowe..In his huse, at his borde.  ?a1300 Jacob & J.(Bod 652)   483:  He geþ to boure ri3t from
þe bord.  (c1300) Havelok (LdMisc 108)   99:  Hauede he non so god brede, Ne on his bord non
so god shrede.  c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)   3887:  At þe heye bord eten kinges ten.  c1330(?
c1300) Amis (Auch)   1580:  Fram þe hei3e bord oway He was ycharged al-so, To eten at þe
tables ende.  (1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   167:  Þe coupe of gold..by yzet ope þet bord of þe
kinge.  (a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   1.15:  I my3te gadre somwhat of þe crommes þat falleþ
of lordes bordes [Higd.(2): the table of lordes].  (a1393) Gower CA (Frf 3)   8.732:  His
doghter..ate bord before him stod, As it was thilke time usage.  (c1395) Chaucer CT.Sq.(Manly-
Rickert)   F.85:  Vp he rydeth to the heighe bord; In al the halle ne was ther spoke a
word.  c1400(?c1390) Gawain (Nero A.10)   481:  Þenne þay bo3ed to a borde.  (a1402)
Trev.DCur.(Hrl 1900)   91/6:  A man þat weyteþ anoþer mannes borde.  c1425(c1400) Ld.Troy
(LdMisc 595)   5170:  Ne scholde he neuere haue spoken word, Ne bred eten at no bord.  c1440
PLAlex.(Thrn)   11/10:  Alexander..keste doun þe bourdez wit þe mete.  (1441) Indent.Oxf.in
RS 50.2   525:  Item, for a burde standyng in þe hall, pris viii d. Item, a long borde, viii
d.  c1450(?c1425) Avow.Arth.(Tay 9)   751:  Burdes þay were neuyr bare, Butte euyr couurt
clene.  a1500(?a1450) GRom.(Hrl 7333)   7:  He sawe a bord or a table, i-sprad with rich
metys.  

5.

(a) A meal;

(a)  a1400(a1325) Cursor (Vsp A.3)   14094:  Naþer sco tent to mete ne bord.  (1472) Will York
in Sur.Soc.45   204:  She will putt..my sones..into the abbay of Seynt Oswaldis, and agree with
the Priour for their burds and ther lernyng.  ?a1475 Ludus C.(Vsp D.8)   328/16:  I go to his
burryenge boorde.  c1475(?c1400) Wycl.Apol.(Dub 245)   47:  I cnowlech..me to hold þe same
feith of þe sacrament of þe Lordis bord.  

6.

(a) A ship

(a)  ?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   14615:  Noþess clene flocc Þurrh trewwess bord wass
borr3henn.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   11979:  Þa aras heom a wind..Bordes þer
breken.  

7.

A shield.

c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   5186:  Breken brade sperren; bordes [Otho: sceldes] þer
scænden.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   9283:  Nom he his buren & his gold ileired bord
[Otho: his sceald briþte].  c1400(?a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)   1268:  He smyteþ hym on þe
sheeld ygylt, Þorou3-out þe boord, þorou3-out þe felt.  a1425(?c1350) Ywain (Glb E.9)  
186:  Bot a burde hang us biforn, Was nowther of yren ne of tre.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy
(Htrn 388)   5827:  He hit hym..on the shild, þat he breke þurgh the burd to the bare throte.  
oed
board, n.

(bɔəd)

Forms: 1–7 bord, (4–6 borde), 4–7 boord, (5–6 boorde, bourde, 6–7 bourd, 6 boarde), 6– board;
north. 4–8 burd, 4–7 burde, 4 Sc. buird, 6– Sc. brod: cf. bred.

[A word or agglomeration of words of complicated history, representing two originally distinct

ns., already blended in OE., and subsequently reinforced in ME. by French uses of one of them,
and possibly by Scandinavian uses of one or both. (1) OE. had bord1 neut. ‘board, plank,
shield, ? table’, a Common Teut. str. neut. n., = OFris. and OS. bord (MDu. bort, -de, Du. boord
‘board’, bord ‘shelf, plate, trencher’), MHG. and mod.G. bort ‘board’, Goth. baurd in fotubaurd
‘foot-stool’, ON. borð ‘board, plank, table, maintenance at table’ (Sw. and Da. bord table):—
OTeut. *bord-o(m, repr. an Aryan *bhṛdhom, Skr. *bṛdham: see bred n. (2) OE. had bord2
‘border, rim, side, ship's side’, esp. in phrases innan, utan bordes, also a Common Teut. n., orig.
str. masc. but often also (by confusion with bord1) neuter: cf. OS. bord masc. (? neut.), MDu.
bort, boort -de, Du. boord masc., ‘border, edge, ship's side’, OHG., MHG. bort masc., mod.G.
bord masc. (and neut.) ‘margin, border, ship-board’, ON. borð neut. ‘margin, shore, ship-board’
(Sw., Da. bord ‘ship-board’):—OTeut. *bord-oz side, border, rim. (3) Relationship between these
two words is uncertain: Franck suggests that bord2 is a ppl. form from vbl. root ber- to raise,
representing an Aryan *bhṛtós ‘raised, made projecting’. But the two were associated and
confused at an early date: in most of the Teutonic langs., some of the senses of the masc. word, in
ON. and perh. in OE. all of them, have gone over to the neuter. It is certain that the sense ‘side or
board of a ship’ belongs to bord2; so prob. did that of ‘shield’, the original sense being ‘rim,
limb, or border of the shield’; the sense ‘table’ is doubtful. (4) The WGer. bord2 masc. ‘border,
edge, coast, side, ship's side’ was adopted in Romanic, giving med.L. bordus, It., Sp., Pg. bordo,
F. bord. In the ME. period, and subsequently, the French use of the word has in return greatly
influenced the Eng., so that certain modern uses and phrases of board are really from French. It is
also possible that the development in ME. was in some points (see branch II.) due to
Scandinavian uses.]

I.I A board of wood or other substance. [OE. bord1:—OTeut. bordo(m.]

1. a.I.1.a A piece of timber sawn thin, and having considerable extent of surface; usually a
rectangular piece of much greater length than breadth; a thin plank. Rarely used without the
article, as in made of board, i.e. of thin wood.
   Technically, board is distinguished from plank by its thinness: it ought to be more than 4 inches
in width, and not more than 2½ in thickness, but is generally much thinner.

   c 1000 Ælfric Gen. vi. 14 Wirc ðe nu ænne arc of aheawenum bordum.    c 1300 K. Alis. 6415
Al so hit weore an oken bord.    1375 Barbour Bruce iv. 126 Fyre all cleir Soyn throu the thik
burd can appeir.    1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xii. 239 He shop þe ship of shides and of bordes.    c 
1440 York Myst. viii. 97 To hewe þis burde I wyll begynne.    1535 Coverdale Zeph. ii. 14
Bordes of Cedre.    1596 Shakes. Merch. V. i. iii. 32 Ships are but boords.    1611 Bible Acts
xxvii. 44 Some on boords, and some on broken pieces of the ship.    1661 S. Partridge Double
Scale Proport. 36 A plain Superficies, as a Board or Plank.    1716–8 Lady M. W. Montague Lett.
I. xxxviii. 149 Covered‥with boards to keep out the rain.    1798 Southey Ballads, Cross Roads
25 They carried her upon a board In the clothes in which she died.    1826 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr.
Wks. 1855 I. 122 The cheeks never muve, nae mair than gin they were brods.    1881 Mechanic
50. §146 Floor boards are, or ought to be, an inch in thickness. Boards are generally distinguished
as ‘half-inch board’, ‘three-quarter board’, etc.

b.I.1.b A flat slab of wood fitted for various purposes, indicated either contextually, or by some
word prefixed, as ironing-board, knife-board, etc., the backing, burnishing, cutting, gilding
boards, used by bookbinders, etc., the bare boards (of a floor). Also spec. = surf-board, esp. in
attrib. uses. So back-board, etc.

   1552 Huloet, Bourde or shelf whervpon pottes are sette.    1779 J. King Jrnl. Mar. in Cook's
Voy. (1785) III. v. vii. 145 Twenty or thirty of the natives [of the Sandwich Islands], taking each
a long narrow board, rounded at the ends, set out together from the shore.    Ibid. 146 As soon as
they have gained‥the smooth water beyond the surf, they lay themselves at length on their
board, and‥place themselves on the summit of the largest surge, by which they are driven along
with amazing rapidity toward the shore.    a 1837 G. Kennedy Anna Ross 144 Lying on a board to
keep her figure straight.    1845 E. Acton Mod. Cookery xvi. (1852) 336 Dust a little flour over
the board and paste⁓roller.    1864 Tennyson Grandmother 79 Pattering over the boards, she
comes and goes at her will.    1866 Holme Lee Silver Age 128 Laces fresh from the ironing-
board.    1898 [see surf-riding s.v. surf n. 3].    1962 Austral. Women's Weekly Suppl. 24 Oct. 3/1
Special sections of most beaches are now reserved for board-riders.    1963 Observer 13 Oct.
15/6, I hate to think of the next kid that gets stoked on board riding‥and wins a world
championship and nobody even knows him.    1966 Weekly News (N.Z.) 19 Jan. 10/4 Lyall
Bay‥has a regular and well-shaped wave suitable for both swimmer and board rider.

c.I.1.c spec. in pl. The stage of a theatre; hence in various phrases. Cf. stage and tread v. 1 b.

   1768 A. Murphy Let. 14 Mar. in Private Corr. Garrick (1831) I. 291 Mrs. Yates would have
died on the boards sooner than have served me in that manner.    a 1779 Garrick in Boswell
Johnson (1848) 490/1 The most vulgar ruffian that ever went upon boards.    1815
Scribbleomania 120 To gain a footing upon the theatrical boards.    1838 Dickens Mem. Grimaldi
i, He was brought out by his father on the boards of Old Drury.    1883 Fortn. Rev. 470 One of
the most honest actors that ever trod the boards.    1948 W. S. Maugham Catalina xxxii. 220 Nor
must you think that you demean yourself by treading the boards.

2. a.I.2.a A tablet or extended surface of wood, whether formed of a single wide board, or of
several united at the edges.
   Used e.g. for educational purposes (black board), for stretching paper on in drawing, for
moulding, for modelling, for kneading or making pastry on (bake-board, paste-board), for
arithmetical calculations (see abacus), for reflecting or reinforcing sound (sounding-board), for
standing on (foot-board), for springing or diving from (spring-board, diving-board), for
temporarily closing an aperture, chimney-place, window, etc., etc. Also extended to tablets of
other material, e.g. papier-maché, similarly used.
b.I.2.b esp. (= notice-board.) A tablet upon which public notices and intimations are written, or to
which they are affixed.
   to keep one's name on the boards: to remain a member of a college (at Cambridge).

   c 1340 Cursor M. 16684 Abovyn his hed‥a borde was made fast There-on was the tytle
wretyn.    c 1400 Ywaine & Gaw. 186 A burde hung us biforn‥nowther of yren, ne of tre.
1566 Knox Hist. Ref. Wks. 1846 I. 227 Compelled to kyss a paynted brod (which thei called
‘Nostre Dame’).    1626 Bacon Sylva §145 The strings of a Lute‥do give a far greater Sound, by
reason of the Knot and Board, and Concave underneath.    1692 Washington tr. Milton's Def.
Pop. vii. Wks. (1851) 179 Go on, why do you take away the Board [abacum]? Do you not
understand Progression in Arithmetick?    1847 Tennyson Princ. ii. 60 Which [statutes] hastily
subscribed, We enter'd on the boards.    1870 F. Wilson Ch. Lindisf. 100 On a board amidst the
firs‥is a second notification.    1883 Daily Tel. 15 May 2/7 This hit [at cricket] caused three
figures to appear on the board.    1885 Free Ch. Coll. Calendar 21 The matriculation takes place
in the Senate Hall at times indicated on the Board at the gate.

c.I.2.c spec. The tablet or frame on which some games are played, as chess-board, draught-board,
bagatelle-board, backgammon-board; the frame used for scoring at cribbage. Also, the target in
the game of darts. Often fig.

   1474 Caxton Chesse 6 The maner of the table, of the chesse borde.    1647 Ward Simp. Cobler
67 They will play away King, Queen‥Pawnes, and all, before they will turn up the board.    a 
1674 Clarendon Hist. Reb. (1704) III. xv. 497 There is scarce any thing but pawns left upon the
board.    1824 Miss Mitford Village Ser. i. (1863) 217, I cannot help suspecting that, board for
board, we cribbage-players are as well amused as they [chess-players].    1880 Disraeli Endym.
viii. 35 The Tories‥were swept off the board.    1936 R. Croft-Cooke Darts ii. 10 However
boards may vary in size, in the arrangement of double spaces, the numbers are always placed in
the same order.    1940 N. Marsh Death at Bar ii. 28 Cubitt hurled his last dart at the board.
Ibid. 31 If you'll stretch your hand out flat on the board I'll outline it with darts.    1969 Punch 25
Nov. 808/2, I am the man who gets a double 20 with his opening dart, then never again even
reaches the board.

d.I.2.d Austral. and N.Z. (See quots. 1890 and 1941.)

   [1857 R. B. Paul Lett. fr. Canterbury vi. 90 A tarpaulin or a few boards to shear on.]    1878 ‘R.
Boldrewood’ Ups & Downs vii. 74 Next year I hope we shall have fifty thousand to shear, and‥I
don't see why there shouldn't be a hundred thousand on the board before you sell out.    1890
Chambers's Jrnl. 17 May 310/2 Down each side [of the Australian woolshed] is a clear space
some ten feet in width, technically known as ‘the board’. Here the shearers work.    1925 R. Rees
Lake of Enchantment viii. 113 The shed hands with brooms [swept] the ‘board’ clear.    1941
Baker Dict. Austral. Slang 11 Board, the floor of a shearing shed; the whole number of shearers
employed in a single shearing shed.    1956 G. Bowen Wool Away! (ed. 2) vii. 96 If a ‘sheepo’
wants to stay popular with the board of shearers he will be fair at all times.

e.I.2.e across the board: see across B. 2 c.

3. a.I.3.a A kind of thick stiff paper; a substance formed by pasting or squeezing layers of paper
together; usually in combinations, as pasteboard, cardboard, mill-board, Bristol board, perforated
board.

   1660 Act 12 Chas. II, iv. Sched., Boards vocat. Pastboards for bookes.

b.I.3.b In pl., playing-cards. slang.

   1923 S. T. Felstead Underworld of London i. 11 The‥steward [at the Cardsharpers' Club] is a

well-known criminal famous for his skill with the ‘boards’.    1927 E. Wallace Mixer i. 7 The
greatest and most amazingly clever card-sharp that ever handled the ‘boards’.

4.I.4 Bookbinding. Rectangular pieces of strong pasteboard used for the covers of books. A book
in boards has these only covered with paper; if they are covered with cloth it is in cloth boards; if
with leather, parchment, or the like, the book is bound. Formerly (still occas.) the boards were of
thin wood, as ‘an ancient tome in oaken boards’.

   1533 More Apol. iv. Wks. 850/2, I wil be bounden to eate it, though the booke be bounden in
boardes.    1533–4 Act 25 Hen. VIII, xv. §1 Printed bookes‥bounde in bourdes, some in lether,
and some in parchement.    1549 Bk. Com. Prayer (Colophon), [To] sell this present booke‥
bounde in paste or in boordes.    1790 Scott in Lockhart (1839) I. 233 The bookseller‥had not
one in boards.    1832 Athenæum No. 241. 375 Published in a neat pocket volume, cloth boards.
1852 Househ. Words VI. 290 A little drab volume in boards.    1883 Fortn. Rev. Apr. 495 In the
case of really good books, ‘boards’ should always be regarded as temporary inadequate
coverings.

II.II A table. [A doubtful sense of OE. bord; but common already in 12th c. Cf. ON. borð,
used also as in sense 7, Sw., Da. bord.]

†5.II.5 a.II.5.a gen. A table. Obs. (exc. in specific senses.)

   a 1000 Ags. Ps. (Spelm.) lxviii[ix]. 23 (Bosw.) Geweorþe bord oððe mese [mensa] heora
beforan him.    a 1300 Cursor M. 14733 [Iesus] þair bordes ouerkest, þair penis spilt.    c 1400
Apol. Loll. 57 Þe auteris of Crist are maad þe bordis of chaungis.    c 1400 Destr. Troy 1657
There were bordis full bright‥of Sedur tre fyn.    c 1470 Henry Wallace ii. 279 Sche gart graith
up a burd‥With carpetts cled.    1771 P. Parsons Newmarket II. 24 That board of green cloth, the
billiard-table.

(With the following cf. also sense 2 c.)

b.II.5.b above board: open, openly, in the sight of all the company; see above-board. Similarly
†under board: secretly, deceptively (obs.).

   1603 Sir C. Heydon Jud. Astrol. ii. 67 After the fashion of iugglers, to occupie the minde of the
spectatour, while in the meane time he plaies vnder board.    1620 R. Carpenter Conscionable
Chr. (1623) 118 All his dealings are square and above the boord.    1686 W. de Britaine Hum.
Prud. xvi. 74 Keep formality above board, but Prudence and Wisdom under Deck.    1841 L.
Hunt Seer ii. (1864) 61 All‥was open and above-board.

c.II.5.c to sweep the board (at cards): to take all the cards, to pocket all the stakes. Also often
transf. and fig., to carry off all the stakes or prizes; hence, to carry off all the honours.

   1680 Cotton in Singer Hist. Cards (1816) 346 He who hath five cards of a suit‥sweeps the
board.    1711 Pope Rape Lock iii. 50 Spadillio first‥Led off two captive trumps, and swept the
board.    1822 Scott Nigel xxi, 'Tis the sitting gamester sweeps the board.    1882 H. Smart in Li-
quor Christmas Ann. ii. 7/1 We have swept the board so far [in racing].    1884 Livestock Jrnl. 25
July 83/3 Mr. Parry Thomas swept the board in Any Variety Sheep-dogs with his Sir Guy and
Welsh Boy.    1905 Hornung Thief in Night 256 The bloated Guillemard usually sweeps the
board with his fancy flyers [sc. horses].

6.II.6 spec. a.II.6.a A table used for meals; now, always, a table spread for a repast. Chiefly
poetical, exc. in certain phrases, esp. in association with bed to denote domestic relations; see bed
1 c. †God's board: an old name of the Lord's table, or Communion table in a church. †to begin the
board: to take precedence at table.

   a 1200 Moral Ode 307 in Lamb. Hom. 179 Be-fore godes borde.    c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 93
Mi bord is maked. Cumeð to borde.    a 1225 Ancr. R. 324 Hwon gredie hundes stondeð biuoren
þe borde.    1340 Ayenb. 235 Hi serueþ at godes borde.    c 1386 Chaucer Prol. 52 Fful ofte tyme
he hadde the bord bigonne.    c 1440 Gesta Rom. (1879) 259 Afor mete, whenne the bordes er
sette and made redye.    c 1450 Sir Beues (1887) 1957 Palmer, thou semest best to me‥Begyn
the borde, I the pray.    1484 Ripon Ch. Acts (Surtees Soc.) 162 Here I take the, Margaret, to my
hanfest wif, to hold and to have, at bed and at burd.    1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 10 With
humble & reuerent loue go to the borde of god.    1553 Primer in Liturgies Edw. VI (1844) 375
Pray we to God the Almighty Lord‥To send his blessing on this board.    1561 Hollybush Hom.
Apoth. 27 a, And when thou wilt ryse from the borde or supper.    1606 Holland Sueton. 38
Inviting a friend to his bourd.    1636 Featly Clavis Myst. 340 To present ourselves at the Lord's
board.    1815 Scott Ld. of Isles ii. xvii, Gleaming o'er the social board.    1862 Trollope Orley F.
viii. (ed. 4) 56 He looked at the banquet which was spread upon his board.    1869 Freeman
Norm. Conq. (1876) III. xi. 12 The wife whom he had once driven away from his hearth and
board.

b.II.6.b ? A wooden tray. (Cf. sense 2.)

   ? c 1475 Sqr. lowe Degre 464 There he them warned‥To take up the bordes everychone‥Full
lowe he set hym on his kne, And voyded his borde full gentely.

7.II.7 transf. a.II.7.a Food served at the table; daily meals provided in a lodging or boarding-
house according to stipulation; the supply of daily provisions; entertainment. Often joined with
bed or lodging.
   [Cf. ON. vera á borði með to be at board with.]

   c 1386 Chaucer Can. Yeom. Prol. & T. 464 Sche wolde suffre him no thing for to pay For bord
ne clothing.    1465 Marg. Paston Lett. 505 II. 193 He payth for hys borde wykely xxd.    1466
Mann. & Househ. Exp. 211 For v. mennes bord‥ijs. xd.    1575 Brieff Disc. Troub. Franckford
(1846) 145 In a great deale off dett‥for their necessary bourde.    1636–46 Row Hist. Kirk
(1842) Pref. 26 Till I suld see how his burd suld be payit.    1856 Olmsted Slave States 47 Let
them find their own board.

b.II.7.b The condition of boarding at another's house.

   a 1658 Cleveland Gen. Poems (1677) 29 Or break up House, like an expensive Lord, That gives
his Purse a Sob, and lives at Board.    1632 Field & Mass. Fatal Dow. iv. i, Young ladies appear
as if they came from board last week out of the country.

8. a.II.8.a A table at which a council is held; hence, a meeting of such a council round the table.

   1575–6 Lansdowne MS. 21 in Thynne Animadv. (1865) Introd. 53 Called before the highe
boorde of thee counsell.    a 1674 Clarendon (L.) Better acquainted with affairs than any other
who sat then at that board.    1702 Lond. Gaz. No. 3840/1 One of the Clerks of Her Majesty's
Board of Green-Cloth.    1828 Scott F.M. Perth II. 5 Taking a place at the council board.    1848
Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 443 The new King‥took his place at the head of the board.    Ibid. II. 75
His gloomy looks showed how little he was pleased with what had passed at the board.

b.II.8.b Hence: The company of persons who meet at a council-table; the recognized word for a
body of persons officially constituted for the transaction or superintendence of some particular
business, indicated by the full title, as Board of Control, B. of Trade, B. of Commissioners, B. of
Directors, B. of Guardians, Local (Government) Board, Sanitary Board, School Board.

   1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, i. i. 79 The Honourable Boord of Councell.    1635 Naunton Fragm.
Reg. in Phœnix (1707) I. 190 In the ordinary course of the Board.    1712 Steele Spect. No. 478
⁋14, I would propose that there be a board of directors.    1780 Burke Sp. Econ. Reform Wks.
1842 I. 249 We want no instructions from boards of trade, or from any other board.    1796 (title)
Report of the Board of Health, at the first annual Meeting, May 27.    1804 Hansard's Parl. Deb. I.
1168 By command of the Master General and Board of Ordnance.    1838 Dickens O. Twist ii,
‘Bow to the board,’ said Bumble. Oliver‥seeing no board but the table, fortunately bowed to
that.    1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. 195 The treasurer had been succeeded by a board, of which a
Papist was the head.    1863 H. Cox Instit. iii. ix. 732 It is carried into execution by local Boards.

c.II.8.c U.S. (a) The stock exchange; also attrib.; big board (colloq.), spec. the New York Stock
Exchange or a quotation board for securities listed there; (b) (See quot. 1909.)

   1837 Hennepin (Illinois) Jrnl. 26 Oct. 1/4 The sales of specie to-day, at the Board, were $1,700
in American gold.    1905 Daily Chron. 28 Apr. 4/4 None of the ‘board members’—as the Stock
Exchange men are called—ever appears on the kerb.‥ While fortunes are made and lost on the
kerb, it does not seem so serious a business as ‘on the board’.    1909 Ibid. 3 May 4/6 A ‘board’
appears to be a ‘committee’ in the United States, while their word committee is applied to what
we should call a board.    1929 Times 30 Oct. 14/1 Just before the close of the market on the ‘big
board’.    1969 Daily Tel. 6 Feb. 3/6 The New York Stock Exchange, known as the ‘big board’,
does about twice the amount of business, but is less speculative than the American Stock
Exchange.
9.II.9 Any piece of furniture resembling a table; with various defining words, as dressing board a
dresser, sideboard a side table; also, the platform on which tailors sit while sewing, etc.

   1400 Test. Ebor. (1836) I. 260 Unum platyngborde‥vj. brade bordes beste in domo.    1601 F.
Tate Househ. Ord. Edw. II (1876) 68 Every messe that commeth from the dressing bourd.    1807
Crabbe Par. Reg. ii. 162 By trade a tailor‥again he'd mount the board.

III.III A shield. [OE. {bord}2: if orig. ‘border’ or ‘rim’.]

†10.III.10 A shield. Obs.

   a 1000 Elene 114 (Gr.) Þær wæs borda ᴁebrec.    c 1205 Lay. 9283 His gold ileired bord.    c 
1400 Destr. Troy 5827 He hit hym so hetturly‥on the shild, þat he breke þurgh the burd.    1535
Stewart Cron. Scot. III. 457 Content he wes‥On fit to fecht withoutin ony hors, Doublet alane,
withoutin ony bourd.

IV.IV A border, side, coast. [OE. bord2; lost in ME. and replaced by F. bord.]

11.IV.11 The border or side of anything; a hem; an edge; a coast. Obs. exc. in seaboard,
sea-coast.

   c 897 K. Ælfred Gregory's Past. Pref. 2 (Sw.) Hu hi‥sibbe innan bordes ᴁehioldon‥and hu
mon utan bordes‥lare hider on lond sohte.    c 1340 Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 159 Spures vnder, Of bryȝt
golde vpon silk bordes.    c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. iv. 149 In other place a borde of hem [plants]
let make.    1513 Douglas Æneis xi. ii. 36 Twa robbis‥Of rich purpour and styf burd of gold.
1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. I. 369 Out of Denmark be se burd mony myle.    1600 J. Dymmok
Ireland (1843) 34 The approaches‥should be‥carryed to the board of the counterscarp.    1874
Mahaffy Soc. Life Greece viii. 243 To venture down from the hill forts to the sea board.

V.V A ship's side. [OE. bord2: reinforced by OF. bord, and perh. by ON. borð, Da. bord.]

12.V.12 Naut. a.V.12.a The side of a ship. (See aboard.) Now only in phrases, as within board,
without board; over (the) board, over the ship's side, out of the ship, into the sea; weather-board
(see quot.). (See also the following, and cf. larboard, starboard, etc.)

   a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 1354 (Gr.) Ða be-utan beoþ earce bordum.    c 1205 Lay. 1518 Ne cume
ȝe neauer wiðuten scipes bord.    c 1325 E.E. Allit. P. C. 211 Berez me [Jonah] to þe borde &
baþeþes me þer-oute.    ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 1699 Broghte us‥to Bretayne‥with-in [s]chippe-
burdez.    c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 867 Fast by þe shippus bord.    c 1430 Syr Gener. 364 Shuld cast
hem ouer the ship bord.    1470–85 Malory Arthur (1816) II. 328 They came within board.    1513
Douglas Æneis iii. x. 21 And within burd hes brocht That faithfull Greik.    c 1532 Ld. Berners
Huon 478 Huon‥stode lenynge ouer the shyppe bord beholding the see.    1630 Wadsworth Sp.
Pilgr. v. 38 They‥brought vs from the Prow to the board of the Gally to helpe them in rowing.
1650 T. Froysell Gale of Opport. (1652) 31 The Marriners they cast him over Ship-board.    1829
Marryat F. Mildmay x, I‥kept‥my anger within board.    c 1850 Rudim. Navig. (Weale) 160
Without-board, without the ship. Within-board, within the ship.    1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk.,
Weather-board, that side of the ship which is to windward.

b.V.12.b by the board: (down) by the ship's side, overboard, as to slip by the board: ‘to slip down
a ship's side’ (Smyth Sailor's Word-bk.). to come, go, etc. by the board: to fall overboard, to go
for good and all, to be ‘carried away’. to try by the board: to try boarding. Also fig.

   1630 J. Taylor (Water P.) Wks. iii. 40/1 In this fight their Reare-Admirals Maine Mast was shot
by the boord.    1666 Lond. Gaz. No. 60/3 Our Main-stay, and our Main Top-Mast‥came all by
the board.    1666 Pepys Diary 11 Feb., The storms‥have driven back three or four of them with
their masts by the board.    1705 Lond. Gaz. No. 4098/3 All her Masts came by the board.    1836
Marryat Midsh. Easy (1863) 210 Captain Wilson, therefore, resolved to try her by the board.
1856 Longfellow Wreck Hesp. xix, Her rattling shrouds, all sheathed in ice, With the masts, went
by the board.    1859 Autobiog. Beggar Boy 14 Every instinct and feeling of humanity goes by
the board.    1875 Whitney Life Lang. vi. 103 A class of grammatical distinctions which have
gone by the board.

c.V.12.c on board: on one side, close alongside (of a ship or shore); also as prep., short for on
board of. (See also 14.) to lay (a ship) on board: to place one's own ship alongside of (it) for the
purpose of fighting. to run on board (of), to fall on board (of): lit. to run against, fall foul of (a
ship); fig. to make an attack, fall, upon (a person or thing). on even board with: exactly alongside
with; fig. on even terms with, ‘square’ with.

   c 1505 Dunbar Gold. Targe 55 Hard on burd vnto the blomyt medis‥Aryvit scho.    1630 R.
Brathwait Eng. Gentl. (1641) 351 Hee hath kept himselfe on even boord with all the world.
1655 W. Gurnall Chr. in Arm. i. (1669) 2/1 His hungry soul for want of better food, falls on
board upon the Devil's chear.    1677 Lond. Gaz. No. 1202/3 The Glorieux‥laid the Arms of
Leyden on Board, which took Fire, and was burnt.    1707 Ibid. No. 4380/3 We saw‥a cluster of
5 or 6 Ships on board each other.    1720 De Foe Capt. Singleton iii. 40 Keeping the coast close
on board.    1797 Nelson in A. Duncan Life (1806) 41 The San Nicholas luffing up, the San Josef
fell on board her.    1829 Marryat F. Mildmay iii, A large‥frigate ran on board of us.    1860
Merc. Mar. Mag. VII. 172 It is better to keep the land on board as far as Solitary Isle.

d.V.12.d board on board, (corruptly) board and board, board by board: side by side, close
alongside of each other. [= Fr. bord à bord 14th c. in Littré, also ON. borð við borð.]

   c 1450 Lonelich Grail xxxix. 370 It [a shipe] aproched so ny, Tyl bord on bord they weren.
1614 Raleigh Hist. World v. i. §6 When they were (as we call it) boord and boord, that is when
they brought the Gallies sides together.    1634 W. Wood New Eng. Prosp. i. i, Roome for 3 Ships
to come in board and board.    1697 Lond. Gaz. No. 3278/3 A Fight of several hours Board by
Board.    1761 Chron. in Ann. Reg. 64/2 The Ships were board and board three different times,
which occasioned great slaughter on both sides.

e.V.12.e board and board: (sailing) by a succession of close tacks.

   1926 R. Clements Stately Southerner 156 She met with a severe hammering off the Horn, but
clawed her way to windward, and, after a week of board and board, managed to slip round.
†13.V.13 (poetically in OE.) A ship. Obs.

   a 1000 Elene 238 (Gr.) Bord oft onfeng‥yða swengas.    a 1000 Gnomica 188 (Gr.) He‥
druᴁað his ar on borde.    c 1325 E.E. Allit. P. B. 470 Bryngez þat bryȝt vpon borde.

14. a.V.14.a on board (beside the technical sense in 12 c) has now, in common use, the meaning:
On or in a ship, boat, etc.; into or on to a ship. That this expression is elliptical, is witnessed by
the fuller form on ship-board (cf. ME. ‘within schippe burdez’ in 12), and the construction ‘on
board of the ship’, or ‘on board the ship’ (where it is perhaps often supposed that ‘board’ means
the deck). Hence board-ship used attrib. or as adj.
   On board appears to be a later expansion (cf. afoot, on foot) of aboard, a-bord, and this to have
been taken directly from Fr. à bord, as in aller ou monter à bord, être à bord, short for au bord du
vaisseau, in which bord ‘ship's side’ comes contextually to be equal to ‘ship’ itself. Similar
phrases are used in other modern Teut. langs., as Du. aan boord, Ger. an bord, Sw., Da. om
skibsbord. Although on borde occurs poetically in OE., and vpon borde in ME., in sense of ‘in,
upon ship’, these appear to have no historical connexion with the later a-board, which begins
about 1500, and on board, which appears late in the 17th c.

   1688 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) I. 450 Sir John Narborough‥died on ship board.    1705
Addison Italy 6 A Capuchin who was on Board with us.    1768 Tucker Lt. Nat. II. 528 The
common sailor will not return on board.    c 1800 P. Hoare Song, On board of the Arethusa.
1835 Marryat Jac. Faithf. i, He went on shore for my mother, and came on board again.    1840
― Poor Jack xxiii, The captain‥had his grog on board.    1852 Life in Bombay 216 The board-
ship habit of taking brandy and water at night.    1894 M. Dyan Man's Keeping II. iii. 62 The
liberal allowance of ‘board-ship’ flirtation.    1924 Blackw. Mag. June 743/2 In the curiously
intimate routine of a board-ship life‥we became very friendly.

b.V.14.b on board is used as prep. for on board of.

   1693 Lond. Gaz. No. 2847/3 They‥put on board her 10 French Men.    1711 Ibid. No. 4887/3
From on Board Sir Edw. Whittaker, off the Lizard.    1720 De Foe Capt. Singleton xvi. 270 Nor
would we let any of our men go on board them, or suffer any of their men to come on board us.
1847 Grote Greece ii. xlvii. IV. 189 They were placed on board a fleet.    1875 Jowett Plato (ed.
2) I. 74 This man Stesilaus has been seen by him on board ship.

c.V.14.c transf. (orig. U.S.). In or into a railway train, tram-car, omnibus, etc. Also, in or into an
aircraft.

   1872 Mark Twain Innoc. Abr. xii. 79 Once on board, the train will not start till your ticket has
been examined.    1881 Daily News 7 Sept. 5/4 (U.S. Corresp.) The train started at 6.30, having
on board Mrs. Garfield and her daughter.    1883 Harper's Mag. 847/1 She‥found herself‥on
board the other train.    1915 Sphere 6 Feb. 151 The forward end of the front gondola of a
Zeppelin is screened to protect the pilot.‥ Searchlights‥are carried on board to be used when
necessary.    1969 Times 28 Nov. 1/4 A four-jet B.O.A.C. VC 10 airliner with 69 people on
board.
d.V.14.d Of drink: having been consumed (by a person). slang.

   1800 R. Lowth Billesdon Coplow 2 Well sous'd by their dip, on they brush'd o'er the bottom,
With liquor on board enough to besot 'em.    1840 Marryat Poor Jack xxiii. 164 The captain‥had
his grog on board, and was as brave as brass.    1940 N. Marsh Death at Bar iv. 72 With a brandy
like this on board, I'd face the devil himself.

e.V.14.e to take on board (fig.), to drink or consume; to swallow; also, to accept (an idea, etc.), to
grasp.

   1908 K. Grahame Wind in Willows x. 234 When Toad had taken as much stew on board as he
thought he could possibly hold, he got up and said good-bye to the gipsy.    1979 Management
Today Nov. 17/1 (heading) TV interviews can lose fears if Peter Fairley's techniques are taken on
board.    1983 Listener 16 June 32/4 Someone who has previously given hardly any thought to
nuclear weapons suddenly takes on board the full realisation of what they mean in terms of
destruction.    1985 M. Gee Light Years xxxix. 257 She did love me once. You might find that
hard to take on board.    1986 Theology July 304 ARCIC's failure to take on board what the
critical study of religion has to tell us about how religious communities‥really work.

15.V.15 Naut. Sideward direction (in reference to the ship's course); the course of a ship when
tacking. to make boards: to tack. to make short boards: to tack frequently. Also in some fig.
phrases, as †to sail on another board: to take another course of conduct. Cf. tack.
   [Of Fr. origin: cf. Fr. virer de bord to turn the ship's side in another direction; courir des bords
to tack. Cf. starboard and larboard used as directions in reference to a ship's course.]

   1533 Bellenden Livy i. (1822) 73 Seing her husband wes dede, scho began to sail on ane uthir
burde.    1535 Stewart Cron. Scotland (1858) I. 17 Thai salit‥Ay be ane burd fyve dais and fyve
nycht.    1596 Sir F. Vere Comm. 30 Making still toward them upon one board.    1685 Cotton
Montaigne III. 456 To this and that side I make tacks and bords.    1772–84 Cook Voy. (1790)
IV. 1404 We passed the night in making short boards.    1837 Marryat Dog-Fiend xlii, Standing
in‥to make a long board upon the next tack.    1862 Harper's Mag. (1884) Jan. 229/1 The
tendency was to give her a stern board [i.e. to sail her stern first].    1875 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit.
Sports ii. viii. i. §5 The vessel will do it in two boards if there be room in the channel.

VI.VI In Coal-mining.

16.VI.16 The name given in some colliery districts to each cutting or excavation in the direction
of the working in the method called ‘board-and-pillar’, or ‘post-and-stall’ work; ‘a passage driven
across the fibres or grain of the coal’. Newcastle Mining Terms.
   [Found in beginning of 18th c.: the coal was then dragged from the ‘face’ in sledges over
wooden boards or deals laid down as ‘ways’. It is suggested that board thus came to mean ‘way’,
‘passage.’ Cf. Boardways Course in 18.]

   1708 Compleat Collier, A yard and quarter wide for a headways‥and out of this it is we turn
off the boards or other workings for every particular hewer.    1839 Penny Cycl. XV. 247 A series
of broad parallel passages or bords about eight yards apart, communicating with each other by
narrower passages or ‘headways’.    1854 North of England Inst. Mining Engineers II. 252 It is
the practice here‥to arrange board and pillar workings so that the goaf may lay on the dip of the
face of the work.    1860 Fordyce Coal, etc. 32 The hewers working at the face of the bords or the
pillar workings.    1875 Ure Dict. Arts III. 326 Working with pillars and rooms or boards, styled
post and stall. (There are ‘narrow-boards’, ‘travelling-boards’, ‘stow-boards’, the ‘mother's gate
or common going board’, etc.—R. Oliver Heslop, Corbridge.)    1877 Encycl. Brit. VI. 64/1 In
the former [sc. pillar work], which is also known as‥‘bord and pillar’ in the north of England,‥
the field is divided into strips.    1960 Times Rev. Industry Oct. 34/3 Bord-and-pillar working.

VII.VII Comb. and attrib.

17.VII.17 General comb., chiefly attrib., as (sense 1) board-lining, board-work; board-built adj.;
(sense 6) board-end, board-head, board-knife; (sense 8) board-house, board-minister, board-
officer, board-room (also transf., the members of a board).

   1837 Hawthorne Amer. Note-Bks. (1871) I. 46 *Board-built and turf-buttressed hovels.

   a 1652 Brome Damoiselle iv. i. A *Boordsend-King, a pay-all in a Tavern.    1820 Scott Abbot
xxiii, Take thy place at the board-end, and refresh thyself after thy journey.

   1637 Rutherford Lett. civ. (1862) I. 264, I wonder what He meaneth to put such a slave at the
*board-head.    a 1758 Ramsay Poems (1844) 82 Sat up at the boord-head.

   1772 Wilson in Phil. Trans. LXIII. 62 The *Board-house, which is a large building for the use
of the *board-officers.

   c 1440 Promp. Parv. 44 *Boordeknyfe, mensacula.    1530 Palsgr. 200/1 Borde knyfe, covteav
de escuier.

   1879 Jefferies Wild Life in S. County 159 The same *board-lining of the window.

   1801 Huntington Bank of Faith 30 They were *board-ministers, or ministers belonging to the
board.

   1836 Dickens Sk. Boz i, A miserable looking woman is called into the *board-room.    1935 G.
Greene England made Me ii. 47 The monogram had been designed by Sweden's leading artist‥
E.K. in the board-room; E.K. in the restaurants.    1959 Times 5 Oct. 2/6 The work involves‥
convincing the boardroom, management and operatives.

   1825 Bro. Jonathan I. 8 The snow‥driving thro' every nook and crevice of the *board-work.

18.VII.18 Special comb. board-and-bat, -batten, applied attrib., esp. to a building constructed
from wide boards, normally in conjunction with narrow battens; board-bill orig. U.S., the charge
made for board (sense 7); board coal, a kind of coal resembling wood in its markings; board-
fellow, a companion at table, a messmate; board-fence U.S., a close fence made with boards; so
board-fencing; board foot, the volume of wood in a piece of timber 1 ft. square and 1 in. thick;
†board-form, a trapezium; board-game, a game played on a board (sense 2 c); †board-land (see
bord-land); board-man, a man who carries advertisement boards, a ‘sandwich man’; board-
measure, superficial measure applied to boards; board-money = board-wages; board-nail, a spike
or large brad; Board of Trade unit, the commercial unit of electrical energy, equivalent to one
kilowatt-hour of current; abbrev. B.T.U.; board-rule, a scale for finding the superficial area of a
board without calculation; †boardstock, a piece of timber to be sawn into boards; boardway's
course, ‘the direction perpendicular to the cleavage of the coal’ (Coal-trade Terms, Northld. &
Durh., 1851); board-work, -worker (see quots.). Also board-cloth, -school, -wages.

   1902 G. Ellis Mod. Pract. Joinery xxiii. 350 *Board and batten, a method of forming the walls
of wooden houses with a thick and thin board placed alternately.    1918 H. A. Vachell Some
Happenings x. 157 A collection of the worst-looking board-and-batten shacks between Shasta
and San Diego.    1939 Steinbeck Grapes of Wrath xv. 182 Board-and-bat shacks.

   1833 E. T. Coke Subaltern's Furlough ii, He has gone away without paying‥his *board bill.
1952 Koestler Arrow in Blue xv. 129 My board-bill in the Pension Glaser was often overdue for
several weeks.

   1760 Milles in Phil. Trans. LI. 537 That which they call the wood coal, or *board coal, from the
resemblance which the pieces have to the grain of deal boards.    1811 J. Pinkerton Petral. I. 596
Straight flat pieces, three or four feet in length, which are called board-coal.

   1382 Wyclif Judg. xiv. 11 Thei ȝouen to him *bordfelawis thretti.    1741 Richardson Pamela
(1824) I. 102 Be you once more bed-fellows and board-fellows.

   1718 in Records Early Hist. Boston XIII. 48 They‥shall‥maintain a substanciall *board

fence‥from the Barn to three rods distant southerly from the dwelling house.    1860 O. W.
Holmes Prof. Breakf.-t. xi. 331 When the boys used to make pictures of me with chalk on the
board-fences.    1917 C. Mathewson Sec. Base Sloan xi. 143 It had a board fence around it.

   1870 Trans. Ill. Agric. Soc. VIII. 232 By means of hedging and movable *board fencing, keep
up a great deal of pasturage.

   1896 Vermont Board of Agric. Rep. XV. 83 About 24 cubic feet per acre is added‥annually—
this means about 150 board feet.

   1551 Recorde Pathw. Knowl. i. Def., Called of the Grekes trapezia‥may be called in englishe
*borde formes.

   1934 Discovery Oct. 287/2 Among Vikings as well as Celts *board-games of this type are
widely known.

   1884 Cassell's Fam. Mag. Dec. 32 The announcements were borne by a gang of unhappy
*board-men.

   1656 H. Phillips Purch. Patt. (1676) 142 Draw the like line for *Board measure.

   1809 R. Langford Introd. Trade 62 *Board Money, and Small Charges.

   1866 Rogers Agric. & Prices I. xx. 498 The spike or *board-nails of the records.

   1913 Metal Industry Handbk. 41/1 The *Board of Trade Unit is the commercial standard for
purposes of public supply, and is measured by the product at the rate of doing work into the hours
divided by 1,000: hence 1 B.T.U. = 1,000 Watt hours.

   1619 Sir R. Boyle in Lismore Papers (1886) I. 217, 240 tymber trees‥wherof most is squared
and reserved for *boordstocks.    1623 E. Wynne in Whitbourne Newfoundland 105 Wee got
home as many boordstocks, as afforded vs aboue two hundred boords.

   1887 Creer (title) *Board work, or the Art of Wig making.    Ibid. Introd., Board-work, in the
fullest extent of its signification, means all that which is done by clever hairdressers and wig-
makers in the workshop and at the work table.    1927 Daily Express 5 July 5/4 Students are
taught the general principles of dressing hair and the technique of board-work, or preparation of
hair for making transformations, wigs, and curls.

   1921 Dict. Occup. Terms (1927) §428 *Board worker; hairdresser's model maker, perruquier,
postiche worker, posticheur, wig-maker; general terms for all workers engaged in‥making wigs
[etc.].

______________________________

Additions 1993

Add: [I.] [2.]I.2 f.I.2.f Cricket. = score-board (b) s.v. score n. 22; esp. in (so many runs) on the
board, i.e. scored.

   1883 Daily Tel. 15 May 2/7 This hit caused three figures to appear on the board.    1932 Times
29 July 13/4 They had 84 on the board for eight wickets.    1951 People 3 June 8/7 George
Lambert‥had Booth and Edrich out with only 40 on the board.    1977 J. Laker One-Day Cricket
70 Ian Chappell‥had put West Indies in to bat and with only 12 runs on the board, Australia
struck the first blow.    1985 New Yorker 5 Aug. 34/1 The Phillies‥put sixteen on the board in
their first two turns at bat.

g.I.2.g Any (usu. rectangular) flat piece of rigid material, or an assembly of several such pieces,
to which are attached controls, switches, etc. Usu. preceded by a word denoting these fixtures or
their purpose, as control board, switchboard, etc. Cf. panel n.1 16.

   1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 99/2 Board (Elec. Eng.). See control-board, distribution-board.
1966 Simulation Jan. 56/1 The main control board on the right is in many respects a duplicate of
our conventional boards with a combination bench and vertical panel design.    1972 Gloss.
Electrotechnical, Power Terms (B.S.I.) ii. vi. 9 Board, an assembly of panels, the principal
function of which is indicated by the same prefix as is used for panels, e.g. switchboard,
controlboard, etc.    1985 J. Trapido Internat. Dict. Theatre Lang. 88 Board. 1. A general term for
the central control device for the stage lighting circuitry. It normally implies direct control, as
opposed to ‘console’, which denotes remote control apparatus, often computer assisted. The term
is a shortened form of control board or, still older, switchboard.

h.I.2.h Electronics. A printed circuit board together with its attached electronic components, esp.
considered as an addition to existing circuitry in a computer, etc. Cf. *daughterboard n.,
*motherboard n.

   1979 Personal Computer World Nov. 56/1 They will also be demonstrating colour add-on
boards for this machine.    1985 Which Computer? Apr. 66/1 Some of these applications require
an internal board.    1988 PC Mag. Oct. 114/3 The board comes with a slim manual and a setup
disc.

______________________________

Draft partial entry February 2007

▸ board shorts n. orig. Austral. long, loose-fitting shorts of a style originally worn by surfers.

   1975 National Times (Sydney) 13 Jan. 40/1 If you are a 14-year-old schoolgirl‥what really
sends your heart into turmoil is the sight of a‥sun-bronzed surf wearing *board shorts and bare
feet.    2000 P. Moore Full Montezuma (2001) xxi. 363 He was tanned with bleached dreads, and
wore only boardshorts and a shark's tooth necklace.

bord-hreōða
bt
bord-hreōða, -hrēða, an; m. [bord II. a shield, hreōðan to cover, protect]. I. the cover or protection of the
shield; clypei tegmen vel tutela :-- Hǣðne heāpum þrungon under bordhreōðan the heathens thronged in
heaps under the cover of shields, Andr. Kmbl. 256; An. 128: Beo. Th. 4412; B. 2203: Cd. 154; Th. 192,
23; Exod. 236. II. a shield, buckler; clypeus :-- Blicon bordhreōðan shields glittered, Cd. 149; Th. 187,
30; Exod. 160. Hæfdon hie ofer bordhreōðan beācen arǣred they had a signal reared over their bucklers,
160; Th. 198, 9; Exod. 326. Brǣcon bordhrēðan they broke through the bucklers, Invent. Crs. Recd. 242;
El. 122.

bts
bord-hreōða. I. For the cover of the shield substitute a phalanx. v. scild-hreōþa.

ch
bordhrēoða (ē)† m. shield-ornament :
phalanx.
med

oed

bord-rand
bt
bord-rand, es; m. [bord II. a shield, rand a rim, margin] The margin or disc of a shield; scuti margo :--
Biorn bordrand onswāf the hero turned his shield's disc, Beo. Th. 5112; B. 2559.

bts

ch
bordrand m. shield, B2559.

med

oed

bord-weall
bt
bord-weall, es; m. A board-wall, a shield; scutorum agger, testudo, clypeus :-- He bræc ðone bordweall
he broke through the board-wall, Byrht. Th. 139, 60; By. 277: Beo. Th. 5952; B. 2980.

bts

bord-weall Add: I. a line of shields. Cf. scild-weall :-- Hī bord-weal clufan, heōwan heaþolinde, Chr. 937;
P. 106, 13. II. the side of a ship: -- Wiht ( an iceberg) cwom æfter wǣge līðan . . . bord-weallas grōf, Rā.
34, 6.

ch

bordweall m. wall of shields, phalanx : buck-

ler, shield : side of ship, Rn346
med

oed

bord-wudu
bt
bord-wudu; m. Shield-wood, a shield; clypei lignum, clypeus, Beo. Th. 2490; B. 1243. v. bord II.

bts

ch
bordwudu m. shield, B1243.

med

oed

camp-wudu
bt

camp-wudu; gen. -wuda; m. War-wood, a shield; lignum pugnæ, clipeus :-- Ðonne rand dynede,
campwudu clynede then rang the shield, the war-wood sounded, Elen. Kmbl. 101; El. 51. DER. camp.

bts

ch
campwudu m. shield? EL51.

med

oed

geolo-rand
bt
geolo-rand, es; m. A yellow disk, shield, Beo. Th. 880; B. 438: Elen. Kmbl. 235; El. 118. v. Grm. A. u. E.
145.
bts

ch
geolorand† m. buckler covered with yellow stride to and fro, MFH163; W2503.

med

1.

(a) Of an object, a substance, color, etc.: yellow, yellowish; of any of the various shades of
yellow, golden, saffron-colored, amber-colored, yellowish brown; also in conventional
comparisons; ~ (of) colour, of ~ colour; ~ gold, yellow gold, pure gold (as opposed to red gold,
which contains an alloy of copper); ~ red, ?yellowish red, orange-red, scarlet; ~ water, yellow
dye;

(b) gray, bluish gray; swart ~, dark gray.

oed

gūþ-bil gripe????
bt
gūþ-bil, -bill, es; n. A war-bill, a sword, Beo. Th. 5162; B. 2584: 1610; B. 803.

gripe, es; m. Gripe, grip, grasp, hold, clutch, seizure: pugillus, prehensio, captus :-- Se gripe ðære hand
pugillus, Ælfc. Gl. 72; Som. 71, 1; Wrt. Voc. 43. Gripe pugilla, Recd. 38, 72; Wrt. Voc. 64, 75. Eorþ-grāp
heard gripe hrusan earth's grasp, the fast hold of the ground, Exon. 124 a; Th. 476, 15; Ruin. 8. Gripe
mēces oððe gāres fliht the falchion's clutch or the javelin's flight, Beo. Th. 3534; B. 1735: Andr. Kmbl.
373; An. 187: Exon. 67 b; Th. 250, 10; Jul. 125. Of gromra gripe from the cruel ones' clutch, Exon. 68 b;
Th. 255, 16; Jul. 215: 71 b; Th. 265, 34; Jul. 391: Salm. Kmbl. 97; Sal. 48: Elen. Kmbl. 2601; El. 1302:
Andr. Kmbl. 433; An. 217: 1901; An. 953. For mīnum gripe for my grasp, Exon. 126 a; Th. 484, 11; Rä.
70, 6: Beo. Th. 2300; B. 1148. Staþole strengra ðonne ealra stāna gripe stronger in position than the hold
of all stones, Salm. Kmbl. 154; Sal. 76. [Laym. gripen; pl. grasps: cf. O. H. Ger. grif: Ger. griff.] DER.
fǣr-, mund-, nīð-, stān-, sweord-gripe.

bts
gripe. Add: I. grasp, clutch, embrace :-- Seō ǣrene gripu ofer glēda gripe wealleð, Sal. 48. II. attack,
assault, (1) by living creatures :-- Grimne gripe Gūðlāf and Ōslāf mǣndon, B. 1148. Þū þurh deōra gripe
deāðe sweltest, Jul. 125. (2) by things, v. grīpan; II. 2. (a) material :-- Þurh gāres gripe gāst onsendan, An.
187. Hē hæfde him on handa hilde frōfre (frore, MS.), gūðbilla gripe he had in his hand aid for war, for
the assault of battle-bills, Vald. 2, 13. (b) non-material :-- Þǣr is wyrma slite and ealra wǣdla gripe,
Wlfst. 209, 18. III. grasp, power, control, mastery, (1) by persons :-- Þīn feorh beran in gramra gripe, An.
217: 953. (2) by things :-- In glēda gripe, Jul. 391. In þæs wylmes grund ... in glēda gripe, El. 1302. v.
nīd-, on-gripe, and passages at gripa.
gūþ-bord
BT
gūþ-bord, es; n. A warlike board, a shield, Exon. 92a; Th. 346, 11; Gn. Ex. 203: Cd. 128; Th. 163, 5;
Gen: 2693. [Icel. gunn-borð shield.]

BTS

CH

MED

OED

hilde-bord
bt
hilde-bord, es; n. A war-shield, Beo. Th. 799; B. 397: 6270; B. 3139.

bts

ch
hildebord† n. buckler.

MED

OED

hilde-rand
bt
hilde-rand, es; m. A shield. Beo. Th. 2489; B. 1242.

bts

ch
hilderand m. shield, B1242.
med

oed

lind
bt
lind, e; and linde, an; f. I. the linden or lime-tree :-- Lind seno vel tilia, Ælfc. Gl. 45; Som. 64, 111; Wrt.
Voc. 32, 46. Linde tilie, Wrt. Voc. ii. 75, 29. In ða greātan lindan; of ðære lindan, Cod. Dip. Kmbl. iii. 79,
24. On ða gemearcodan lindan; of ðære gemearcodan lindan, vi. 182, 2. Ðonon in āne linde, iii. 392, 1. II.
what is made of the wood of the tree, a shield (in poetry) :-- Wisse hē gearwe, ðæt him holtwudu helpan ne
meahte, lind wið līge, Beo. Th. 4671; B. 2341. Ofer linde lǣrig, Cd. 154; Th. 192, 29; Exod. 239. Under
linde protected by the shield, Andr. Kmbl. 91; An. 46. Leōfsunu his linde āhōf, Byrht. Th. 138, 63; By.
244. Rond, geolwe linde, Beo. Th. 5213; B. 2610. On fyrd wegan fealwe linde,Cd. 94; Th. 123, 14; Gen.
2044. Under lindum, 154; Th. 192, 7; Exod. 228: 155; Th. 193, 23; Exod. 251. Bordum beþeahte,
hwealfum lindum, Judth. 11; Thw. 24, 30; Jud. 214. Beraþ linde forþ, Thw. 24, 16; Jud. 191. Scyldas
wēgon, linde bǣron, Byrht. Th. 134, 45; By. 99: Beo. Th. 4719; B. 2365. Hwīte linde, Cd. 158; Th. 107, 4;
Exod. 301. [Icel. lind a lime-tree; poet. a shield, a spear: O. H. Ger. linta tilia: Ger. linde.] DER. heaðu-
lind; and see linden.

bts
lind. Add: I. :-- Lindan tilię, An. Ox. 2, 8. In ðā geāpan linde, C. D. iii. 375, 5. II :-- Stōd under linde,
under leōhtum scylde, Lch. iii. 52, 19. [The word occurs in many local names, v. C. D. vi. 309-310.]

ch
lind I. f. lime-tree, linden, 61; M; Mdf :
(†) shield (of wood), ['lind'] II. = lynd

med

oed
† {lind} Obs.

Forms: α. 1 lind, linde, 3–5 linde, 3–6 lynde, (5 lyynde), 5–6 lynd, 3– lind. β. 6–8 lyne, line. See
also linn2.

[OE. lind str. fem. and linde wk. fem. (Du. linde), OHG. linda, linta (MHG. linde, linte, G. linde),
ON. (Sw. and Da.) lind:—OTeut. *lendā, perh.:—pre-Teut. *lent‹amacacu›, cogn. w. WAryan
*lntā, represented by Gr. ἐλάτη silver fir.]

1.1 The lime or linden (Tilia Europæa). In ME. poetry often used for a tree of any kind, esp. in
phr. under (the) lind.

α    a 700 Epinal Gloss. 1004 Tilia, lind.    972 in Bond Facs. Charters Brit. Mus. (1877) iii. xxx,
Of steapan leahe in ða greatan lindan.    a 1250 Owl & Night. 1750 Þe wrenne sat in hore lynde.
a 1310 in Wright Lyric P. xiv. 45 In May hit murgeth when hit dawes,‥ant lef is lyght on lynde.
c 1314 Guy Warw. 1205 (A.) And to pleyn vnder þe linde, Þe hert to chacen and þe hinde.    c 
1320 Sir Tristr. 513 Þe king‥teld him vnder linde Þe best, hou it was boun And brouȝt.    1377
Langl. P. Pl. B. i. 154 Was neuere leef vpon lynde liȝter ther-after.    c 1386 Chaucer Clerk's T.
1155 Be ay of chere as light as leef on linde.    ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 454 Lugge þi-selfe undyre
lynde, as þe leefe thynkes.    c 1460 Play Sacram. 389 Iason as Ientylle as euer was the lynde.
1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. II. 525 Syne vp and doun, als lycht as leif of lynd.    1546 T. Phaer Bk.
Childr. (1553) R v a, Ye may still a water, of the floures of lind, it is a tree called in latin tilia.
1796 Morse Amer. Geog. I. 538 Elms, and linds are not here so stately as further north.

β    c 1510 Lytell Geste R. Hode cccxcviii. in Child Ballads III. 75 On euery syde a rose-garlonde
They shot vnder the lyne. [Cf. ccclxxiv, vnder the lynde.]    1587 Harrison England ii. xxii.
(1877) i. 342 We haue verie great plentie‥of these [trees]‥so are we not without the chesnut,
the line [etc.].    1601 Holland Pliny I. 541 As for the Line or Linden tree.    16‥ R. Hood & Guy
of Gisbourne xxii. in Child Ballads III. 92 How these two yeomen together they mett, Vnder the
leaues of lyne.

¶2.2 ? Used erroneously for ‘wood’.

   a 1400 Stockh. Med. MS. ii. 572 in Anglia XVIII. 321 In an harys skyn do it bynde, And lete it
so lyn in feld or lynde.

3.3 attrib., as lind-grove, lind-tree; lind-coal, charcoal made of the wood of the lime.

   c 1450 Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 569/34 Calea, a lyndtre.    14‥ MS. Soc. Antiq. 101 lf. 76
(Halliw. s.v. lyndecole) Half an unce of lyndecole.    1577–87 Holinshed Chron. I. 53/2 Euerie
euening he would write twelue tables, such as they vsed to make on the lind tree.    1610 Shakes.
Temp. v. i. 12 All prisoners Sir In the Line-grove which weather-fends your Cell.    1621 G.
Sandys Ovid's Met. viii. (1632) 279 On Phrygian hills there growes An Oke by a Line-tree.

pleg-scild
bt
pleg-scild, es; m. A small shield :-- Plegscylde pelta, Wrt. Voc. ii. 65, 69. [Cf. lytel scyld pelta, ða læssan
scyldas peltae, i. 35, 28, 59.] Truman pleigscelde tuta pelta, Hpt. Gl. 424, 38.

bts

ch
med

oed

rand
bt
rand, es; m. I. a brink, edge, margin, shore :-- Ārās ðā bī ronde rōf oretta (cf. gesæt ðā on næsse nīðheard
cyning, Beo. Th. 4825 : hlǣw holmwylme neāh, 4814), Ben. Th. 5069; B. 2538. Of ðam fūlan brōce wið
westan randes æsc to the west of the ash tree on the bank (?), Cod. Dip. B. ii. 259, 8. [Cf. later English
rand border, strip, slice :-- Raweȝ and randeȝ, Allit. Pms, 4, 105. Randes of bakun, Piers P. Crede 763.
Rand a narrow stripe, Jameson. Rand the edge of the upper leather, a seam of a shoe, Bailey. Icel. rönd a
stripe : Ger. rand border, edge, margin.] II. the word however is used generally of a shield, denoting the
whole or part of it. (1) Denoting a part, the boss of a round shield, cf. rand-beāh and O. H. Ger. rant
umbo. The word seems to have a different meaning in Icelandic : 'ā fornum skjöldum var tītt at skrifa rönd
þā er baugr var kallaðr, ok er viðd þann baug skildir kenndir.' v. Cl. and Vig. s.v. baugr. Grein gives
margo clypei as the meaning in the following passages, but umbo suits the sense : see too Worsaaē s
Primeval Antiquities of Denmark, pp. 31-2 : 51-3, where instances of early shields are given :-- Rand
sceal on scylde fæst fingra gebeorh a boss must be on a shield, a sure protection for fingers (which
grasped the shield just behind the boss), Menol. Fox 534; Gn. C. 37. Līgȳðum forborn bord wið rond the
buckler against the boss burned with the flames, Beo. Th. 5339; B. 2673. (2) Denoting the whole, a
shield, buckler [Icel. rönd a shield] :-- Rand dynede, campwudu clynede, Elen. Kmbl. l00; El. 50. Ðonne
rond and hand on herefelda helm ealgodon, Andr. Kmbl. 18; An. 9 : 824; An. 412. Hē under rande gecranc
slain he sank under his shield, Beo. Th. 2423; B. 1209. Ðæt hē mē ongeān sleā, rand geheāwe, 1368; B.
682. Siððan ic hond and rond hebban mihte since I could bear arms, 1316; B. 656. Hond rond gefēng
geolwe linde, 5212; B. 2609. Scyldes rond fæste gefēgan wið flyge gāres to join together firmly the
shield's disk against the flight of javelin, Exon, Th. 297, 11; Crä. 65. Beorhte randas, Beo. Th. 468; B.
231. Rondas regnhearde, 657; B. 326. Ðā hī on ðone Reādan Sǣ randas bǣron, Ps. Th. 105, 8; Cd. Th.
199, 2; Exod. 332. Rincas randas wǣgon, 123, 22; Gen. 2049. Bæd ðæt hyra randan (randas ?) rihte
heōldon, Byrht. Th. 132, 22; By. 20. v. bord-, calc-, gafol-, geolo-, hilde-, sīd-rand.

bts

ch
rand (o) m. border, edge? KG : (†) boss of reaguflnc (GL)=raguiinc
shield, rim of shield : (†) shield, buckler, reahte pret. 3 sg. of recean.
B(o). [v. 'rand'] reahtigan to dispute, discuss, AO ISO28.

med

(a) A strip or border of land; (b) a strip or slice of meat; (c) in surnames and place names [see
Smith PNElem.2.80].

oed
rand, n.1

(rænd)
Also 7 (in sense 3 a) rann.

[OE. {rand}, rǫnd brink or bank, shield-boss, shield = ON. rönd shield-rim, shield, stripe (Sw.
and Da. rand rim, border, etc.), OHG. rant shield-boss (G. and Du. rand bank, beach, brink, field-
border, rim, margin, etc.).
   The orig. sense of the word is app. ‘border, margin, rim’, although there is very little evidence
for this in the older literatures, in which the word is almost entirely poetic and restricted to the
shield.]

1.1 A border, margin, or brink (of land). Obs. exc. dial. and regional in specific senses (see latest
quots.).
   The E. Anglian word is usually rond q.v.

   Beowulf 2538 Aras ða bi ronde rof oretta.    [903 in Kemble Cod. Dipl. B. II. 259/8 Of ðam
fulan broce wið westan randes æsc.]    13‥ E.E. Allit. P. A. 105 Þe playn, þe plonttez, þe spyse,
þe perez, & rawez & randez & rych reuerez.    13‥ Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1710 At þe last bi a littel
dich he lepez ouer a spenné, Stelez out ful stilly by a strothe rande.    1840 Spurdens Suppl.
Forby, Rand. A reed-rand, on our rivers and broads is a margin overgrown with reeds.    1868
Atkinson Cleveland Gloss., Rands,‥the borders round fields left unploughed and producing
rough grass: applied loosely to the grass in question.    1895 Daily News 22 Apr. 7/4 The rands,
skirts, and walls thereof, and fens and reed grounds appertaining thereto.    1958 New Biol.
XXVI. 92 The underlying fen peat acts as a reservoir of wetness while the margins of the peat-
filled basin insulate the raised centre from the soil water which is draining into the basin.‥ Such
a bog is called a raised bog, the sloping slides being called the rand, and the insulating zone
round the edge the lagg.

2.2 A strip or long slice: a.2.a of meat (see quots. 1611 and 1895). Now only dial.

   c 1394 P. Pl. Crede 763 Wiþ þe randes of bakun his baly for to fillen.    1530 Palsgr. 260/2
Rande of befe, giste de beuf.    1611 Cotgr., Giste de bœuf, a rand of beefe; a long, and fleshie
peece, cut out from betweene the flanke and buttocke.    1669 Digby Closet Opened (1677) 124, I
like to add to this a rand of tender briskit Beef.    1838 in Holloway Prov. Dict.    1895 East
Anglian Gloss., Rand‥[seems] to signify any fleshy piece from the edges of the larger divisions
of the hind quarter, the rump, loin, or leg.

b.2.b of fish (esp. sturgeon). Now rare.

   1572 in Turner Select Rec. Oxford (1880) 345 Item, thre rands of sturgion‥xijs.    1622 Jrnl.
Eng. Plant. in Arber Story Pilgrim Fathers (1897) 429 We saw it was a grampus which they were
cutting up. They cut it into long rands or pieces, about an ell long and two hands full broad.
1655 Moufet & Bennet Health's Impr. (1746) 264 Being cold, they [sturgeon] are divided into
Jouls and Rands.    1820 T. Mitchell Aristoph. I. 83 A rand Of tunny fish.

3. a.3.a A strip of leather placed under the quarters of a boot or shoe, to make this level before the
lifts of the heel are attached. (Cf. G. rand welt.)
   1598 Florio, Tornara,‥the rande of a shooe.    1647 New Haven Col. Rec. (1857) I. 347 The
deffendant was faine to take those rands to make welts for the plaine shooes.    1688 R. Holme
Armoury iii. 14/1 Parts of a Shooe‥The Rann [is] the Leather as holds the Heel quarters and
Vamp to the Soles.    1823 E. Moor Suffolk Words s.v., The rand and welt being stitched to the
superior and inferior portions, strengthen the work.    1862 Catal. Internat. Exhib. II. xxvii. 56
Box cork boot, without rand or stitch in sole.

attrib. and Comb.    1840 J. Devlin Shoemaker 91 The single rand-pricker then in use (the
forerunner of our present rand-wheel).    Ibid. 113 One rand iron, a tool for setting up the rand
before stitching.    1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 1879/2 A rand-guide, by which the rand-coil or
ribbon is directed.    1882 Worc. Exhib. Catal. III. 31 Rand turning machine‥delivers the
rands‥in a horse shoe form ready for use.

b.3.b A strip of iron.

   1831 J. Holland Manuf. Metal I. 212 The sheet iron‥is cut into strips or rands.

c.3.c Basketry. (See quots. 1910 and 1912.)

   1903 R. M. Jacot Useful Cane Work i. p. ix/2 Trade or workshop terms,‥randing, or a ‘rand’.
1910 Encycl. Brit. III. 482/2 The chief strokes used in constructing an ordinary basket are:—the
‘slew’—two or more rods woven together; the ‘rand’, rods woven in singly.    1912 T. Okey
Introd. Art of Basket-Making v. 20 The next section is formed by a Rand—one single rod worked
alternately in front of and behind each Stake.    1959 D. Wright Baskets & Basketry vi. 136 Rand:
a single rod worked in front of one stake and behind the next.

†4.4 A piece or mass of ice. Obs. rare.

   1633 T. James Voy. 18 As thick rands of Ice, as any we had yet seene.    Ibid. 104 The Ice
lyes‥in rands and ranges.    1702 C. Mather Magn. Chr. (1852) ii. App. 195 They kept
labouring‥among enormous rands of ice.

5.5 [a. G. and Da. rand.] A rim, margin. rare.

   1830 W. Taylor Hist. Surv. Germ. Poetry II. 356 A rusty, brazen, oval vase.‥ ‘Should there be
nought within the rand’, Thinks he, ‘I'll take it to the brazier’.    1868 Stephens Runic Mon. I. 182
The raised rands and upstanding carved ridges have been left in their original‥glitter.
rand-beāh
bt

rand-beāh, -beāg, es; m. The boss of a shield or the shield itself; buculus, bucula (cf. bucula the
boss of a shield, Isidore), bucularis, umbo, testudo (cf. scyld testudo, clipeus, Wrt. Voc. i. 35,
57) :-- Randbeāh umb[r]o, Wrt. Voc. i. 84, 33 : Ælfc. Gr. 9, 3; Som. 8, 34. Īsen rand-beāg ferreus
umbo, ii. 147, 79. Umbo randbēh vel bucula, i. 35. 29. Randbeāh buculus, 288, 13. Rondbeāg, ii.
brak11, 37. Rondbaeg, 102, 29. Randbeāg buculus vel bucularis, 126, 65. Randbeāh testudo,
Ælfc. Gr. 9, 3; Som. 8, 60. Swilce lytel pricu on brādan brede oððe rondbeāh on scilde, Bt. 18, 1;
Fox 62, 5. Randbeāges umbonis, Wrt. Voc. ii. 86, 83 : Hpt. Gl. 521, 8. Hrandbeāga testudine,
495, 47. Under þiccum randbeāge subter densa testudine, Ælfc. Gr. 47; Som. 48, 29. Randbeāg
testudinem, Hpt. Gl. 423, 58. Randbeāgum umbonibus, 424, 6 : Wrt. Voc. ii. 76, 45. [O. H. Ger.
rant-pouc.] v. rand.

bts

ch
rand-hēag, -bēah m. boss (of a shield), ream I. m. cream, LcdllSh. ['ream']
shield, M. II. = hrēam

med

oed

scild
bt
scild, sceld, scyld, es; m. I. a shield, a piece of defensive armour: -- Scyld scutum vel clipeus vel parma,
lytel scyld pelta . . . scyld clipeus, testudo, lytel scyld ancile, ða læssan scyldas peltae vel parmae, Wrt.
Voc. i. 35, 27-28, 57-59. . Scyld cetra, ii. 20, 9: pelta, 68, 4. Sceld scutum, i. 289, 30: Ps. Th. 75, 3. Scyld
sceal gebunden, leōht linden bord. Exon. Th. 339, 15 ; Gn. Ex. 94. Scyld sceal cempan, 341, 22; Gn. Ex.
130. Rand sceal on scylde, Menol. Fox 534; Gn. C. 37. Næfde hē scyld (scutum) æt handa, ðæt hē ðone
cyning mid gescyldan mihte, Bd. 2, 9; S. 511, 22. Nān scyldwyrhta ne lecge nān scēpes fell on scyld, L.
Ath. i. 15 ; Th. i. 208, ii. Ðǣr læg secg mænig ofer scild scoten, Chr. 937; Erl. 112, 19. Dynedan scildas,
Judth. Thw. 24, 24; Jud. 204. Scylda parmarum, Wrt. Voc. ii. 96, 30. Eorles heregeata . . . ehta spera and
eall swā feala scylda, L. C. S. 72 ; Th. i. 414, 7. Hlyn wearð on wīcum scylda and sceafta, Cd. Th. 124, 13;
Gen. 2062. Sīde scyldas, randas regnhearde, Beo. Th. 656; B. 325. II. fig. a shield, protection: -- Scild
mīn beo ðū refugium meum es tu, Ps. Spl. T. 70, 4. Ðam biþ Dryhten scyld, Exon. Th. 229, 31; Ph. 463.
III. scyld in the following passage is used of a bird's back (as being shield-shaped ? or can scyld here be
connected with sculdor ? cf. (?) shield-bone = shoulder-blade quoted by Halliwell. Icel. skjöldr is used of
shield-shaped things) :-- Is se scyld ufan frætwum gefēged ofer ðæs fugles bæc, 219, 17; Ph. 308. [Goth.
skildus: O. Sax. skild : O. Frs. skeld: O. H. Ger. scilt: Icel. skjöldr.] v. bōc-, ge-, pleg-scild.
bts

ch
scield (e, i, y) rn. 'shield.' protector, Bl,Ph :
(±) protection, defence, VPs; AO.CP : part
of a bird's plumage? Pii308.

med
sh ld

1.

(a) A shield; ~ of devis, a shield bearing a heraldic device; (b) in phrases: ~ and banere (target),
~ ne targe, ~ or bokelere; ~ and (ne) spere, sheldes and speres, spere and (ne) ~; ~ and
swerd, swerd ne ~, swerd(es and sheld(es; (c) under ~, bearing a shield, provided with a shield;
beren (dressen, weien, welden, weren) ~; hitten on (smiten upon, smiten thurgh) ~, to strike
(sb.) on (through) his shield; riven ~, cleven ~ in sonder; smiten in (smiten upon, heuen on) ~;
(d) a shield used as a stretcher; (e) a soldier, shield-bearer; (f) in fig. expressions: abiden ~, to
withstand (someone's) onslaught; iwelden mid ~, capture (a city); reisen up ~ ayenes, make war
on (a city), besiege; shuderen under ~, be afraid to begin an argument; tornen ~, relax (one's)
vigilance; (g) in cpds. & combs.: ~ berer, a soldier, guard; ~ makere, one who makes shields;
also as erroneous transl. for ~ berer [quot.: a1382]; sheldes bord, shield-wood, shield.

oed
shield, n.

(ʃiːld)

Forms: 1 {scild}, scyld, sceld, 3–4 s(s)eld, 3–5 sheld, (cheld), 3–6 scheld, 4 sceild, scheeld,
(cheeld, schuld), 4–5 scelde, schild(e, schylde, shilde, 4–6 s(c)helde, sheeld, 4, 6 schield, (childe),
4–8 scheild, 5 scheelde, scheyld, shyld, (shulde), 5–6 shild, shylde, sheelde, 6 shielde, 7 sheild,
6– shield.

[Com. Teut.: OE. (*scield) sceld masc. = OFris. skeld, schild, OS. scild (MLG. schild masc.,
neut.), MDu. schilt, schild- masc. (mod.Du. schild neut.), OHG. scild masc. (MHG. schilt, schild-
masc., G. schild masc., neut.), ON. skjold-r (Sw. sköld, Da. skjold), Goth. skildu-s:—OTeut.
*skeldu-z.]

I. 1.I.1 a.I.1.a In ancient and mediæval warfare, and still in that of primitive peoples, an article of
defensive armour carried in the hand or attached by a strap to the left arm of a soldier, as a
protection from the weapons of the enemy. Sometimes applied spec. to an article of this kind
larger than the buckler, which was usually carried in the hand, and smaller than the pavis, which
was held by an attendant in front of a knight or archer.
   Shields have been made of various materials, as metal, wood, wickerwork covered with skins
or leather, etc. The form has varied greatly in different periods and countries; the principal types
are (1) the circular shield, usually convex in front, with a boss in the centre; (2) the oblong shield,
either flat, or, more commonly, having the form of a portion of a cylinder; and (3) the shield with
curved sides tapering to a point at the lower end, which was the prevailing form in Europe during
the Middle Ages.
In the Middle Ages the ‘armorial bearings’ of a knight were depicted on his shield, and decorated
shields, made for display and not for warlike use, were often hung on walls in churches or other
buildings as a memorial of a knight or noble. Hence sense 3.

   Beowulf 325 Setton sæmeþe side scyldas,‥wið þæs recedes weal.    c 825 Vesp. Psalter lxxv. 4
Ðer ᴁebrec hornas boᴁan sceld sweord & ᴁefeht.    1205 Lay. 23777 Ane scelde gode [1275
sceald].    Ibid. 4212 Heo nomen þa seeldes.    a 1250 Owl & Night. 1713 For mony mon myd
speres orde haueþ lutle strengþe & mid his schelde [Cott. chelde], Ah [etc.].    1297 R. Glouc.
(Rolls) 3840 Ȝif he nadde wiþ þe sseld somdel þe dunt yhent Siker he im adde aslawe.    a 1300
Cursor M. 2497 On helme and sceild [v.rr. shilde, schild, sheeld].    13‥ K. Alis. 693 (Laud
MS.) An horne in þe forehede amydward Þat wolde perce a shelde hard.    c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s
T. 1264 And somme woln haue a Pruce sheeld or a targe.    1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 97
Scipio sigh ones a childe gayliche arrayed, and seide, ‘I wondre nouȝt þat he arrayeþ well his
childe [L. scutum], for [etc.].’    c 1418 in Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 244 Hem nedethe nether spere ne
shulde.    c 1420 Avow. Arth. xxiv, Take thi schild and thi spere.    1508 Dunbar Golden Targe
151 Than come, Resoun, with schelde of gold so clere.    c 1550 N. Smyth tr. Herodian ii. 22
Lyftynge theyr shyldes and Targettes ouer theyr heades.    1590 Spenser F.Q. i. viii. 5 His mightie
sheld Vpon his manly arme.    16‥ Funeral in Popish Times in Q. Eliz. Acad. 34 The helme,
Childe [elsewhere shild], sword, the Cote of Armes, to bee layd vppon ye bere in dew order.
1699 Temple Introd. Hist. Eng. Wks. 1720 II. 531 Their common Arms were small Shields, but
very large Swords.    1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) IV. 331 Its skin is thick, and covered with
brown hair, and the natives make shields of it.    1867 Rep. Paris Univ. Exhib. (1868) II. 489 Two
shields, one in iron and one in steel, are the most remarkable of their works.

†b.I.1.b Phr. under shield: in battle or combat. with spear and shield: in battle array; by force of
arms. Obs.

   a 1300 K. Horn 53 Hy smyten vnder schelde [Laud selde, Harl. shelde].    c 1330 Arth. & Merl.
3096, vi hundred kniȝtes‥þat wele couþe juste in feld wiþ stef launce vnder scheld.    a 1352
Minot Poems (ed. Hall) iv. 50 Our King and his men held þe felde Stalworthy, with spere and
schelde.    c 1440 Partonope 2951 Partonope thatt day vnder hys schelde [v.r. sheelde] xx hethen
he hathe slayn yn the fylde.    1508 Dunbar Poems liv, Quhai for hir saik, with speir and scheld,
Preiffis maist mychtelye in the feld.    1513 Douglas Æneis viii. viii. 111 Of Hetruria the ostis
vnder scheild Wyth that word stoppit in the samin feild.    1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot.
II. 129 Baith pairties‥cum to Dunfreis, thair tha diuyde it with speir and scheild.    1829 Scott
Anne of G. xxxv, They met, as was the phrase of the time, ‘manful under shield’.    Ibid. xxxvi,
We bear no malice for what is done in fair fight under shield.

c.I.1.c In allusion to the custom of suspending a warrior's shield as a memorial of him.

   1817 Coleridge Destiny of Nations 9 Seize, then, my soul! from Freedom's trophied dome The
Harp which hangeth high between the Shields Of Brutus and Leonidas!

d.I.1.d two sides of a shield: two ways of looking at something, two sides to a question; the other
side (or reverse) of the shield: the other side of a question or consideration, the side which is less
obvious or which has not been presented (cf. the reverse of the medal s.v. medal n. 3 b, Fr. le
revers de la médaille).

   ? 1855 A. W. Chapman Let. in R. K. Webb Harriet Martineau (1960) i. 27, I consider it a great
misfortune, in one sense,‥a blessing, often times, in another. There are two sides to every shield.
1885 C. M. Yonge (title) The two sides of the shield.    1909 P. Collier England & English i. 16
These beef-eating, port-drinking fellows in Piccadilly‥are well enough‥but this other side of
the shield is distressing to look at. Poor, stunted‥denizens of the East End.    1911 H. S. Walpole
Mr. Perrin & Mr. Traill ii. 24 The reverse of the shield is‥given in that first letter to his mother.

2.I.2 transf. and fig. a.I.2.a Something serving as a defence against attack or injury. Often in
echoes of Biblical language referring to metaphorical armour, as Ephes. vi. 16.

   c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 193 Habbeð‥hope to helme, and soðe luue to shelde, and godes word
to swerde.    c 1220 Bestiary 161 Ðis neddre siðen he nede sal, makeð seld of his bodi and sildeð
his heued.    a 1225 Ancren R. 52 Heo to þe ȝunge ȝiueð vuel uorbisne, & scheld to werien ham
mide.    a 1300 Cursor M. 9972 It [a castle]‥standes vs for sceild and targe.    1340 Ayenb. 1 Ich
bidde þe hit [þin holy blod] by my sseld auoreye þe wycked uend.    1450–1530 Myrr. our Ladye
132 For hys passyon is suffycyent shylde to vs.    1567 Gude & Godlie B. 107 His trew promeis
is thy scheild.    a 1586 Sidney Arcadia ii. (Sommer) 102 b, What shield [shall I find] against the
violent passions of Gynecia?    1771 Junius Lett. lix. 305 The favour of his country constitutes
the shield which defends him.    1839 F. A. Kemble Resid. Georgia (1863) 69 Again the watery
shield was interposed.    1853 Kane Grinnell Exp. ii. (1856) 20 Strips of heavy sheet-iron‥as a
shield against the cutting action of the new ice.    1856 Emerson Eng. Traits xv. The ‘Times’, No
dignity or wealth is a shield from its assault.

b.I.2.b Applied (as a Biblical Hebraism: see, e.g. Ps. xxxiii. 20, lxxxiv. 11) to a personal defender
or protector (esp. to God).

   971 Blickl. Hom. 29 Þe englas beoþ aa halᴁum mannum on fultume swa swa scyld.    a 1000
Phœnix 463 Þam biþ dryhten scyld.    c 1275 Five Joys Virg. 13 in O.E. Misc. 87 Beo vre scheld
from vre iro.    c 1374 Chaucer Troylus ii. 532 Thow be my sheld for þy benignite.    c 1380
Wyclif Wks. (1880) 155 Þus lordis ben made schildis of synne for a litel money or worldly
seruyce of wickid curatis.    1535 Lyndesay Satyre 3 His Sone, our Sauiour, scheild in necessitie.
1738 Wesley Psalms & Hymns, Ps. iii, But Thou art a Shield for me.    a 1833 Sir R. Grant
Hymn, ‘O worship the King’, Our shield and defender, The Ancient of days.

†c.I.2.c Government, sway (of a country). Obs.

   1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1725) 8 Þe lond lese þe armes, changed is þe scheld.    Ibid. 69 Harald,
þorgh comon assent, Was corouned nobly, & for kyng þei him helde, Bot þe duke of Normundie
to William felle þe schelde.
†d.I.2.d Shelter, protection (in physical sense). Obs.

   1615 R. Brathwait Strappado 202 Where being benighted, [he] tooke no other shield, To lodge
him and his ware then th'open field.    1618 Chapman Hesiod's Georg. ii. 331 But then, betake
thee, to the shade that lies, In shield of Rocks.

3.I.3 Her. = escutcheon.

   shield-of-arms: an escutcheon with armorial bearings. shield of pretence = escutcheon of
pretence (escutcheon 1 c), cf. inescutcheon.

   c 1320 Sir Beues (A) 1322 Tirri on Beues be-held And seȝ þe boiste wiþ a scheld.    c 1325
Gloss. W. de Bibbesw. in Wright Voc. 153 L'eskou de gules [glossed a reed cheeld] ad porté.
1531 Rec. St. Mary at Hill (1905) 48 Item, a lyttell shelde of golde Innamyled with whyt and
grene.    1540 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 463 Concessit dicto W. et heredibus tallie unum duplex lie
tressour auri in eorum lie schield circa eorum arma.    a 1552 Leland Collect. (1715) I. 234 Syr
Maurice bare in a Grene Shild thre Bores of Golde.    1562 Legh Armory 38 b, The fift [worthy]
was Iudas Machabeus, whose Shielde was Or, ii. Rauens in Pale proper.‥ The viii. was
Charlemaine, & he bare the Ierusalem Shielde, Impaled with the imperiall Cote.    1707 Hearne
Collect. 5 July (O.H.S.) II. 24 Persons regard Dr. Woodward's Shield as ‘a banter’.    1835 Penny
Cycl. IV. 110/1 Our author's [Beaumont's] shield may be seen in any Baronetage.    1864 Boutell
Her. Hist. & Pop. i. (ed. 3) 4 Such is the origin of Shields-of-Arms.    1868 Cussans Handbk. Her.
iv. (1893) 69 The Inescutcheon, or Shield of Pretence, is [etc.].    1905 C. Davenport Jewellery
viii. 142 The three legs in the shield-of-arms of the Isle of Man.

4.I.4 An ornamental piece of plate (more or less in the form of a shield) offered for competition
in an athletic or other contest.

   1868 Wimbledon Annual 23 The ‘Elcho’ Challenge Shield.    1898 Field 23 Apr. 625/3 It has
now been decided that the clubs shall jointly hold the shield during the ensuing twelve months.

II.II A protective covering or shelter.

5.II.5 Applied to certain parts of animal bodies. [= G. schild, shield of a boar, a tortoise, etc.]
a.II.5.a The thick, tough skin upon the sides and flanks of the boar; spec. an article of food (in
full, shield of brawn), made by placing a piece of this skin round the inside of a cylindrical mould
and filling up with meat, and cooking until soft and tender. (Cf. brawn n. 3.)

   [1337 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 32 Festum Sci. Cuthberti in Sept., In 2 scutis de Braune pro
festo empt. a diversis.]    13‥ E.E. Allit. P. B. 58 Wyth scheldez of wylde swyn.    c 1400 Master
of Game (MS. Digby 182) v, Þei haue herd skynne and stronge flessh; and specially vpon þe
shoulder, þat is called þe shelde.    1486 Bk. St. Albans, Hunting f ii b, The sheldys on the
sholderis: therof shall .ii. be.    a 1552 Leland Collect. (1715) I. 231 By eating of a sheelde of a
wilde bore he got an appetite.    1625 Massinger New Way iv. i, Did you not deuoure this
morning, A shield of Brawne, and a barrell of Colchester oysters?    1641 J. Murrell Cookerie
(ed. 5) 5 A Shield or Collar of Brawne.    1705 Poor Robin Observ. Feb., They then look like a
Shield of Brawn at Shrovetide out of Date.    1819 Scott Ivanhoe vii, Wamba‥opposed to the
beard of the Jew a shield of brawn, which he plucked from beneath his cloak.    1861 T. L.
Peacock Gryll Grange xxxii, You will always find a piece of cold roast beef and a tankard of
good ale; and just now a shield of brawn.

allusive uses.    1607 Lingua ii. i. C 4, If they would vse no other Bucklers in warre, but sheilds of
Brawne.    1610 J. Guillim Heraldry iii. xiv. 135 The shield of a Boare‥is a good Buckler
against that cruell Enemy called Hunger.

b.II.5.b Zool. A protective plate covering a part; a scute, a carapace, a plastron, or the like.

   1704 Phil. Trans. XXVI. 1627 These were the Shields of the Cochineel Flies.    1774 Goldsm.
Nat. Hist. (1776) VII. 352 The shield of the breast [of the mole-cricket] is of a firm texture.
1828 Stark Elem. Nat. Hist. II. 65 Shell a conical shield, with the summit inclined.    1857
Agassiz Contrib. Nat. Hist. U.S. I. 255 [In Turtles] The dorsal shield, usually called by the French
name ‘carapace’, is connected by a bridge with another shield, commonly called ‘plastron’.
1861 P. P. Carpenter in Rep. Smithsonian Instit. 1860, 234 Pleurobranchus has a thin, flat horny
shield.    1880 Huxley Crayfish i. 24 The great shield or carapace is very easily separated from
the thorax and abdomen.

†6.II.6 The seat of a privy; hence, a privy. Sc. Obs.

   [Cf., for the sense, F. garde-robe.]

   1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. (Rolls) II. 658 This fals tratour wnder the schield wes set, Quhilk to
his cuming tuke gude tent and cuir, With ane lang speit‥Amang the bowellis vpwart in the breist
Straik him to deid.    1552 Abp. Hamilton Catech. (1884) 65 Quhen he passit to the scheild to
purge his wame.    1566 Burgh Rec. Edin. (1875) III. 222 That all personis that hes scheildis
clenge the samin or euer thai be full, sua that thai brek nocht furth and rin in the streit.    1582
Ibid. (1882) IV. 259 Middingis, scheildes, furrouris [etc.].

7.II.7 A framework erected for the protection of workmen engaged in boring or tunnelling and
pushed forward as the work progresses; also, a watertight case used in submarine tunnelling to
keep back quicksands and inrushes of water.

   1837 L. Hebert Engin. & Mech. Encycl. II. 805 The work [Thames tunnel] was commenced in
1825.‥ To give security to the men in excavating, Mr. Brunel invented a cast-iron shield or
frame.‥ This shield [etc.]    1838 Civ. Engin. & Arch. Jrnl. I. 290/1 Two rows of close whole
timber piles should be driven‥with space sufficient for the shield to travel.    1895 Daily News 5
June 7/3 A circular shield with a cutting edge is driven by sheer hydraulic pushing through the
soil.

8. a.II.8.a A protective device attached to a field-gun in order to shelter the gunners from rifle-
fire.

   1898 E. S. May Field Artillery 313 Personally I do not believe in shields; if really bullet proof,
they are so heavy as to hamper mobility.    Ibid., Even without shields men working quick-firing
guns would be slightly less exposed than they are at present.
b.II.8.b A protective device in clothing, as a dress-shield.

   1884, etc. [see dress-shield s.v. dress n. 4 a].    1897 Sears, Roebuck Catal. 321/3 Kleinert pays
for the dress if it is ruined by perspiration, if his shields are used in it.

c.II.8.c Mech. (See quots.)

   1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. 316 Shield. (1) A covering employed to protect the
bearings and spindles of emery-grinding machines from the action of the gritty dust. (2) A guard
placed over or in front of band and circular saws and portions of machinery to protect the
workmen from accidents.    1967 J. L. & G. H. F. Nayler Dict. Mech. Engin. 323 Shield, a
contrivance or covering, protective plate, or screen, to protect machinery or the operator, from
damage or accident.

d.II.8.d Physics. An electrically conducting cover of a device or apparatus intended to protect it

from external electric or magnetic fields or to reduce or eliminate interference radiated by the
device or apparatus itself. Cf. screen n.1 6.

   1919 J. A. Fleming Thermionic Valve ii. 66 (caption) Fig. 34 shows the valve‥with copper-
gauze shield for protecting from external electric fields.    1947 R. Lee Electronic Transformers
& Circuits vi. 174 Multiple shields increase the action‥because eddy currents induced in the
shields set up fluxes opposing the stray field.    1975 D. G. Fink Electronics Engineers' Handbk.
vi. 32 It is often desirable to shield part of the circuit from electromagnetic fields. The shields can
absorb, reflect, or degrade (by multiple internal reflections) the electromagnetic energy. The most
commonly used shields are braided copper.

e.II.8.e Physics. A mass of material, usu. lead or concrete, intended to absorb neutrons and other
ionizing radiation emitted by a reactor or accelerator. See also biological shield s.v. biological a.

   1933 Proc. R. Soc. A. CXLI. 262 The steel shield S prevents the impact of secondary electrons
upon the glass walls.    1947 M. D. Kamen Radioactive Tracers in Biol. iv. 93 Protection against
γ radiation is best afforded by working with remote control devices behind heavy lead shields at
least 2–3 inches thick.    1962 Newnes Conc. Encycl. Nuclear Energy 756/2 Such a shield is an
iron or barium loaded concrete. The main part of the shield in most reactors, called the bulk or
biological shield, is made of such material.    1974 Encycl. Brit. Macropædia XIII. 319/1
Typically, a ‘core barrel’‥is enclosed in a thermal shield, a pressure vessel, a water shield
against neutrons, and a blanket of reinforced concrete for gamma-ray absorption.

9.II.9 The lower front part of a ploughshare.

   1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm I. 415 The share proper, consisting of the shield, terminating in the
point e, and of‥the feather or cutter.    1875 in Knight Dict. Mech.

III.III Applied to things shaped like a shield.

†10.III.10 Used to render OF. escu as the name of a coin: see ecu. Cf. scute n.1 1. Obs. rare.
   c 1386 Chaucer Prol. 278 Wel koude he in eschaunge sheeldes selle.    1599 Thynne Animadv.
(1875) 45 The florens in Chaucers tyme‥was of the valewe of thre shillinges, foure pence‥or at
the leaste, of two shillinges tenne pence farthinge‥some of them beinge called ‘florens de
scuto’, or of the valewe of the ‘shelde’, or frenche crowne.

11.III.11 Horticulture. = escutcheon 3 d, scutcheon n.1 4 c.

   1572 L. Mascall Plant. & Graff. 22 All other maner of trees aforesayde, doe take verye well to
be graffed wyth Cyons, and also in the shielde.    1606 Ram Little Dodeon D 8, To graffe in the
Shield, is to be done in Iune or Iuly, with the rynde.    1707 Mortimer Husb. (1721) II. 262
Sharpen that end of the Bark below the Bud, like a Shield or Escutcheon.    1842 Loudon
Suburban Hort. 306 The shield being inserted in the usual manner, another with an orifice in it, to
admit the bud of the first, is laid over it.

12.III.12 Bot. a.III.12.a (See quot. 1806.)

   1796 Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) IV. 75 [A Lichen found] about the bodies of old oak‥trees
near Holsworthy, Devonshire, abundantly with innumerable shields.    1806 W. Turton tr. Linn.
Nat. Syst. VII. Expl. Terms, Shield, the saucer-like fructification of lichens.    1862 Chamb.
Encycl. III. 352/1 The species of the genus Lecanora are crustaceous lichens, with a flat uniform
thallus, and unstalked shields.

b.III.12.b (See quot.)

   1840 Paxton Bot. Dict., Shield, a broad table-like process in the flowers of Stapelia.

c.III.12.c One of the cells forming the covering to the male organs of Characeæ.

   1875 Bennett & Dyer Sachs' Bot. 284 Each of these cells forms a segment of the shell of the
ball, and they are hence called Shields.

13.III.13 Embryology. (See quot.)

   1913 J. W. Jenkinson Vertebrate Embryology 135 There is distinguishable in the blastoderm at

the close of segmentation a circular or oval area placed excentrically towards the posterior end;
this area is the embryonic shield.

†14.III.14 ? A sheet of ice. Obs.

   1624 Maldon (Essex) Court Deeds Bundle 108 fol. 9 Payd to Willyam Brand and Symon
Crauford for breaking the sheilds of ice in the ryver‥this last winter.

15. a.III.15.a A keyhole plate. ? Obs. [= G. schild.] Cf. escutcheon 3 c, scutcheon n.1 4 e.

   1649 Caldwell Papers (Maitland Club) I. 103 For ane lock and sheild to ye new chalmer dore of
Cauldwell 3 2 0.
b.III.15.b Cutlery. A small metal (usually ‘German silver’) plate fixed on the handle of a penknife
or pocket-knife, for ornament or to be engraved with the owner's name.

   1876 Callis Cutlery (Brit. Manuf. Industr.) 163 About 1730 engraving of the shields and
bolsters of pen and pocket knives‥was commenced.

c.III.15.c (See quot.)

   1870 C. C. Black tr. Demmin's Weapons of War 369 The flat piece of metal which is
sometimes affixed to the bottom of the hilt is called a shield.

d.III.15.d A policeman's badge of office. U.S.

   1903 N.Y. Evening Post 29 Oct. 3 The ex-policeman who turned in his shield in September.
1956 ‘E. McBain’ 87th Precinct (1959) 19 Why don't you turn in your shield? Become a hackie
or something?    1970 E. R. Johnson God Keepers xv. 167 Nobody said that a detective rating‥
and a shield provided detectives with all the right answers.

16. a.III.16.a gen. A flat or slightly convex surface more or less resembling a shield in shape.

   1849 Ruskin Sev. Lamps ii. §21. 53 The shield of stone which, usually supported by a central
pillar, occupied the head of early windows.    1873 Miss Thackeray Old Kensington xii. 100 A
faded Italian shield of looking-glass.

b.III.16.b A shield-shaped centre of a chair-back.

   1897 [see shield-back adj., sense 20 a below].

17.III.17 A fancy breed of pigeons, of various colours.

   1855 Poultry Chron. III. 140/1 (table) Toys, or any other Variety [of pigeon] not mentioned
above; such as Suabians‥, Shields, Swiss, &c.    1868 Tegetmeier Pigeons xxi. 174 The Shields
are so termed from bearing on their wings a coloured mark like a shield, on a white ground.
1874–6 Fulton's Bk. Pigeons 352 Shields. The colours of these are Black, Red, Yellow, Blue, and
Silver. They are invariably plain-headed birds.

18.III.18 Physical Geogr. a.III.18.a A large, seismically stable mass of Archaean basement rock
having the form of a flat or gently convex peneplained platform and usu. forming the nucleus of a
continent. Freq. with capital initial in proper names, as Baltic shield, Canadian Shield. [tr. G.
schild (introduced in this sense by E. Suess Das Antlitz der Erde (1888) II. iii. ii. 42).]
   In quot. 1968 ellipt. for Canadian Shield.

   1906 H. B. C. Sollas tr. Suess's Face of Earth II. iii. ii. 30 The whole of the north-east of
America, from the mouth of the St. Lawrence to that of the Mackenzie‥belongs to a broad table-
land of horizontal Palaeozoic beds, from beneath which the Archaean foundation crops out in the
middle of the table-land not unlike a flat shield. This Archaean shield is thus surrounded by a ring
of horizontally stratified sediments.‥ It is to the exposed Archaean surface that we give the
name of the Canadian shield.    1906 [see Baltic a. 3].    1915 C. Schuchert Text-bk. Geol. II. xxi.
461 Most of the present continents have been formed around ancient protuberances of the
lithosphere, the nuclear lands or shields.    1939 A. K. Lobeck Geomorphol. i. 4 Suess showed
that certain substantial areas of the earth have always been rigid and unyielding, as, for example,
the Canadian and Baltic Shields of America and Europe, the eastern Siberia Shield of Asia, [etc.].
1963 D. W. & E. E. Humphries tr. Termier's Erosion & Sedimentation ii. 40 The ancient shields,
which are also called ‘old platforms’, are none other than peneplains which have almost attained
a final form.    1968 Beaver Autumn 14/1 He was with the voyageurs somewhere out in the bush
covering some historic route over the Shield.    1969 Bennison & Wright Geol. Hist. Brit. Isles iii.
41 Before the break up of the continents the Lewisian rocks were probably contiguous with the
Canadian-Greenland shield, one of the original continental cores.    1971 I. G. Gass et al.
Understanding Earth iii. 55/1 The oldest continental regions, the Precambrian Shields, are often
dominated by igneous rocks such as granite or by highly metamorphosed rocks such as gneiss.

b.III.18.b The dome of a shield volcano.

   1937 Bull. Volcanologique I. 94 Composite structures resulting from the accumulations of a

series of shifting vents of shield type.    1943 Amer. Jrnl. Sci. CCXLI. 241 On the north and
northwest its great lava shield abuts against the dormant or extinct volcanoes of Mauna Kea and
Hualalai, and on its southeastern slope rests the smaller, younger shield of Kilauea volcano.
1976 Sci. Amer. Jan. 33/2 Olympus Mons is enormous by terrestrial standards. Its shield is
between 500 and 600 kilometers across, some five times larger than the largest shield on the
earth.

IV.IV Combinations.

19.IV.19 Obvious combinations: a.IV.19.a simple attributive, as shield-boss; denoting a person

armed with or carrying a shield, as shield-boy, shield-man; (sense 15 d) shield number.

   1910 G. Henderson Norse Infl. Celtic Scot. ii. 42 Sword-axe, *shield-boss and cauldron.

   1607 Middleton Five Gallants iv. viii. 306 Torch-bearers and *shield-boys.

   1892 Rider Haggard Nada xxv. 210 Close up, *shield-men—close up!

   1972 J. Gores Dead Skip i. 8 The policeman‥repeated his name, adding his *shield number.

b.IV.19.b objective, as shield-maker; shield-bearing, shield-losing adjs.; also shield-breaking adj.

and n.

   1824 Symmons tr. Æschylus' Agamem. 64 Many proud *shield-bearing men.

   1867 Tennyson Passing of Arthur 109 *Shield-breakings, and the clash of brands.    1870
Bryant Iliad xxi. 485 Shield-breaking Mars began the assault.

   1848 B. D. Walsh Aristoph. Clouds i. iv, When they saw the *shield-losing Cleónymus.
   14‥ Nom. in Wr.-Wülcker 686/19 Hic scutarius, a *scheldmaker.    1908 Rider Haggard Ghost
Kings xviii. 260, I have sold the hides to the shield-makers.

c.IV.19.c similative, as shield-form, shield-formed, shield-like, shield-shaped adjs.; parasynthetic,

as shield-backed, shield-gilled, shield-headed adjs.

   1880 *Shield backed [see regency 7 b].    1895 Comstock Study Insects 115 The Shield-backed
Grasshoppers.    Ibid. 146 The Shield-backed Bugs.

   1784 tr. Spallanzani's Diss. Nat. Hist. II. 275 The pumpion with *shield-form fruit.    1835
Encycl. Metrop. (1845) XXIII. 640/2 Of the three [laminae] between the eyes, the central is
shield-form.

   1822 J. Parkinson Outl. Oryctol. 108 Clipeus. Round, *shield-formed.‥ Scutum. Angular or
ovate shield-formed.    1835 Encycl. Metrop. (1845) XXIII. 640/1 The central lamina of the three
between the edges shield-formed and acuminate.

   1861 P. P. Carpenter in Rep. Smithsonian Instit. 1860, 211 Order Scutibranchiata. (*Shield-
gilled Crawlers).

   1854 A. Adams, etc. Man. Nat. Hist. 307 *Shield-headed Fish-Parasites (Peltocephala).

   1552 Udall tr. Geminus' Anat. C j, The patyll or the kne bone, called of some men the
*shyldelyke bone.    1877 Huxley Anat. Inv. Anim. v. 227 Flat shield-like processes.

   1601 Weever Mirr. Martyrs C 8 b, If euer *sheild-shapt Comet was portent Of Criticke day,
foule and pernitious.    1839 Lindley Introd. Bot. iii. (ed. 3) 448 Shield-shaped (clypeatus).
1857 A. Gray First Less. Bot. (1866) Gloss.

20. a.IV.20.a Special comb.: shield-arm, the left arm (cf. shield-hand); shield-back a., having a
shield-shaped back; †shield-bone, a shoulder-blade; shield-bud, a bud and a portion of the bark
surrounding it used in grafting; hence shield-budding, the operation of grafting such a bud;
shield-cartilage, -gristle = thyroid 1 a; shield-cell Bot., one of the component cells of the
reproductive organ in Characeæ; shield-guard, a form of trigger-guard used by some continental
manufacturers of shot guns and rifles; shield-hand, an alleged ancient designation for the left
hand (cf. shield-arm); shield-hedge = shield-wall; †shield-knave (= G. schildknabe) = shield-
bearer; shield-leaved a. (rare), having peltate leaves; shield-lion nonce-wd., a lion emblazoned
upon a heraldic shield; shield-maid, -maiden = shield-may; shield-money = scutage; shield-pin, a
safety-pin; shield-plate Zool., ? = scute n.1 4; shield-ring = shield-wall; shield-ship (see quot.);
shield volcano [tr. G. schildvulkan (H. Reck 1910, in Geol. und palæont. Abhandl. IX. 84)], a
volcano having the form of a very broad dome with gently sloping sides, characteristic of the
eruption of basic lavas of low viscosity; shield-wall arch. [OE. scildweall], the interlocked shields
of a body of men fighting on foot; †shield-work, embroidery in the form of shields.

   1640 tr. Verdere's Rom. of Rom. iii. xv. 58 A great gash in his *shield arm.
   1897 K. W. Clouston Chippendale Period Eng. Furnit. 65 In the ‘*shield back’ chair, which is
Hepplewhite's favourite shape, the shield and its interior ornament making the splat never touch
the seat of the chair at all.    1939 Country Life 11 Feb. p. xxvii (Advt.), Fine Antique
Hepplewhite Mahogany Shield-back Arm Chair with attractively carved splats.    1978
Morecambe Guardian 14 Mar. 9/7 Other new items are shield-back dining chairs and matching
carver chairs with loose drop-in seat.

   c 1600 Leg. Guy Warw. xxiv, One of his *sheeld-bones to this day Hangs in the citye of
Coventrye.

   1891 L. H. Bailey Nursery-bk. (1896) 95 This [style of budding] is known as shield-budding‥

A *shield-bud is shown natural size.

   1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 301 All the different modes of budding may be reduced to two:—
*shield-budding‥and flute-budding.

   1881 Behnke Mechanism Human Voice (ed. 2) 51 *Shield (Thyroid) Cartilage.

   1881 Bentley Man. Bot. (ed. 5) 391 The globule‥consists of eight valves, or, as they have
been termed, *shield-cells.

   1615 Crooke Body of Man 636 The first is called in Greeke θυροειδής the *Shield-Gristle.

   1892 Greener Breech-Loader 84 The *shield-guard, or horn before guard.

   1891 Sir D. Wilson Right Hand 202 The recognition of the *shield-hand‥has already been
referred to as one familiar to the ancient Greek and Roman.

   1892 Rider Haggard Nada xxv. 210 Straight at the *shield-hedge drove Umslopogaas.

   1627 Hakewill Apol. (1630) 165 *Shieldknave or armour bearer to Charles the Great.

   1860 Ruskin Mod. Paint. V. vi. iii. 11 An outer spray of any *shield-leaved tree.

   1872 Tennyson Gareth & Lynette 1186 Sir Lancelot, having swum the river-loops—His blue
*shield-lions cover'd—softly drew Behind the twain.

   1851 Thorpe North. Mythol. I. 156 The Valkyriur‥are also called‥Skialdmeyiar (*shield-
maids).    1889 R. B. Anderson tr. Rydberg's Teut. Myth. 192 Shield-maids (amazons) occupy the
position which in the original was held by giantesses.

   1849 Kemble Sax. Eng. i. xii. I. 402 The Anglosaxon belief in the *Shield-maidens.    1870
Morris Story of Volsungs ix, A great company of shield-maidens.

   1877 Green Hist. Eng. People I. 164 To commute their service for sums payable to the royal
treasury under the name of ‘scutage’ or *shield-money.
   1883 H. P. Spofford in Harper's Mag. Mar. 576/2 They are‥*shield-pins, and couldn't prick
her if they tried.

   1855 Gosse Mar. Zool. i. 99 Cephalana. Segments equally provided with appendages; no
*shield-plates.

   1892 Rider Haggard Nada xxv. 210 The *shield-ring wheels in upon itself.

   1875 Knight Dict. Mech., *Shield-ship, one carrying movable shields to protect the heavy guns
except at the moment of firing.

   [1911 Geol. Mag. VIII. 59 The so-called ‘Schild’ volcanoes in Iceland.]    1911 Geogr. Jrnl.
XXXVII. 666 These *shield-volcanoes rise from a roundish base, with a gently convex surface
surmounted by an elevated ring surrounding the crater.    1944 A. Holmes Princ. Physical Geol.
xx. 457 Hawaii‥has been built up from the sea floor by the coalescence of several shield
volcanoes.    1977 Whitaker's Almanack 1978 1037/1 The Isla Fernandina is the summit of a very
large shield volcano rising from the sea floor to 1,495 metres above sea-level.

   Beowulf 3118 Þonne stræla storm, strengum ᴁebæded, scoc ofer *scildweall.    1880 Tennyson
Battle of Brunanburh i, He with his brother‥Brake the shield-wall.

   a 1661 B. Holyday Juvenal (1673) 22 His gown is all *Shield-work on azure [L. cærulea
indutus scutulata].

b.IV.20.b In book-names (chiefly translations from mod. Latin) of animals, birds and insects,
with reference to shield-like markings, or to the shield-like character or form of the scute or
carapace. shield snake, a venomous southern African snake, Aspidelaps scutatus, distinguished
by a large scale on its head.

   1854 A. Adams, etc. Man. Nat. Hist. 371 *Shield-Animal⁓cules (Aspidiscidæ).

   1847 Jrnl. R. Agric. Soc. VIII. 410 Cassida nebulosa. The Clouded *Shield-Beetle.    1854 A.
Adams, etc. Man. Nat. Hist. 196 Shield-Beetles (Cossyphidæ).

   1882 Cassell's Nat. Hist. VI. 104 Scutata, or *Shield Bugs.

   1839 Ure Dict. Arts 303 Cochineal‥was proved by the observations of Lewenhoeck to be‥
the female of that species of *shield-louse, or coccus, discovered in Mexico, so long ago as 1518.

   1855 J. E. Gray (title) Catalogue of the *Shield Reptiles in‥the British Museum.

   1850 A. White List Specim. Crustacea Brit. Mus. 84 Apus cancriformis. *Shield-Shrimp.

   1870 Nicholson Man. Zool. xxxiv. (1875) 253 The *Shield-slaters (Cassidina).
   1910 F. W. Fitzsimons Snakes S. Afr. iv. 84 This snake is known as the *Shield Snake, because
it has a large scale on its nose which is partly detached at the sides.    1973 Stand. Encycl. S. Afr.
IX. 613/1 The shield-snake is egg-laying.

   1863 Wood Illustr. Nat. Hist. III. 70 The Philippine *Shield-tail (Uropeltis Philippinus).

   1854 A. Adams, etc. Man. Nat. Hist. 331 *Shield-Urchins (Scutellidæ).    1896 tr. Boas' Text-
bk. Zool. 138 Shield-urchins or Clypeastridæ.

c.IV.20.c In book-names of plants, as shield-fern, various forms of the genus Aspidium; shield-
flower, any plant of the genus Aspidistra.

   1814 F. Pursh Flora Amer. Septentr. II. 709 *Shield-fern. Aspidium.    1817 Purton Brit. Plants
II. 506 Aspidium filix mas. Common Hedge Shield-fern.    Ibid. 508 Aspidium Thelypteris.
Marsh Shield-fern.    Ibid. Aspidium Oreopteris. Heath Shield-fern.    1889 Hardwicke's Sci.
Gossip XXV. 46/2 Male shield fern.

   1884 W. Miller Plant-n. 125/1 *Shield-flower. The genus Aspidistra.

______________________________

Additions 1993

Add: [I.] [3.]I.3 b.I.3.b Astron. (With capital initial.) The constellation Scutum. Formerly in full
*Sobieski's Shield n.

   [1928 Funk's Stand. Dict., Shield of Sobieski.]    1960 P. Moore Guide to Stars v. 51 Adjoining
it [sc. Aquila] is one of the modern groups—Scutum, the Shield, which contains a magnificent
star-cluster known popularly as the Wild Duck.    1979 R. Kerrod Stars & Planets 38/2 Scutum,
the Shield, is another tiny constellation, and because it straddles the Milky Way it has rich star
fields and is a fine region to sweep with binoculars.

scild-hreōða
bt
scild-hreōða, -hrēða, an ; m. Shield-covering, (1) a shield, buckler: -- Scinon scyldhreōðan, Cd. Th. 184,
26 ; Exod. 113. (2) the arrangement of shields as in the scild-burh, q. v. :-- Scyldrēðan testudine, Wrt.
Voc. ii. 96, 31. Sumum wīges spēd giefeþ æt gūþe, ðonne gārgetrum ofer scildhreādan (-hreoðan?)
sceōtend sendaþ (cf. the passage under scild-weall). Exon. Th. 42, 19; Cri. 675. v. bord-hreōða, and cf.
hrēðan melote, Wrt. Voc. ii. 56, 63.
bts

ch
scildhreoða (y1, e-, ea2) in. shield, buckler :
testudo, -phalanx.

med

oed

sīd-rand
bt
sīd-rand. es ; m. A broad shield :--Ðā wæs on healle heardecg togen sweord ofer setlum, sīdrand manig
hafen. Beo. Th. 2583 ; B. 1289.

bts

ch

med

oed

targa
bt
targe, an; f.: targa, an; m. A targe, small shield [apparently with the same development of meaning as
rand, q. v. Cf. O. H. Ger. zarga costa (aheni) with the English word] :-- Ic geann Ælmēre mīnen discðēne
mīnes taregan, Cod. Dip. Kmbl. iii. 363, 12. Targa[n] parma, scuto, Hpt. Gl. 423, 50. Twā targan and
twegen francan, Cod. Dip. Kmbl. iii. 304, 30. Targena peltarum, Hpt. Gl. 475, 64. [Icel. targa a small
round shield. The word seems to have been taken into the Romance languages from Teutonic.] v. ge-
targed.

bts
targa. Add :-- Fēren targa ignitus clipeus, Kent. Gl. 1073. Mīnes targan, Cht. E. 226, 25.

ch
med

oed
targe, n.1 Now arch. and poet.

(tɑːdʒ)

Forms: 3– targe; also 4 tarche, 5 taarge, 6 terge, Sc. 6– tairge.

[In late OE. targe fem., targa masc., ME. targe, = OF. targe (11th c. in Roland) = It. targa, Pr.
targua, ad. ON. {targa} fem. (c 950 in Vigf.), shield, cogn. with OHG. zarga fem., ‘edging,
border’. OE. targe fem., targa masc. were prob. from ON.; ME. targe from OF.; the Pr. and Sp.
tarja, MHG. tartsche, early mod.Du. tartsche, targie, also from French. (The OCat. darga, Sp. and
Pg. adarga, appear to be from Arab. al-darqah the shield of leather and wood.)]

1.1 A shield; spec. a light shield or buckler, borne instead of the heavy shield, esp. by footmen
and archers.

   [c 997 Charter of Æ-deric in Kemble Cod. Dipl. III. 304 Twa targan and tweᴁen francan.    c 
1015 Charter of Æðelstan Æðeling ibid. 363 Ic ᴁeann Ælmere minen discðene‥mines taregan.]
1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 7462 Wiþ stronge targes hom biuore þat archers ne dude hom noȝt.
13‥ Sir Beues (A.) 4214 Þo Beues seȝ is strokes large, He kepte his strokes wiþ is targe.    c 
1386 Chaucer Prol. 471 On hir heed an hat As brood as is a bokeler or a targe [rime large].    c 
1470 Henry Wallace viii. 799 Feill Inglismen‥With schot was slayn, for all thar targis strang.
1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 42 Tua handit sourdis and tairgis.    1569 T. Stocker tr. Diod. Sic. i. xiii. 22
His footemen which carried the terges and scaling ladders.    1667 Milton P.L. ix. 1111 Those
Leaves They [Adam & Eve] gatherd, broad as Amazonian Targe,‥To gird thir waste.    1715–20
Pope Iliad xiii. 513 The spacious targe (a blazing round, Thick with bull-hides and brazen orbits
bound).    1810 Scott Lady of L. v. xv, Ill fared it then with Roderick Dhu, That on the field his
targe he threw.    1894 Gladstone Odes Horace ii. vii, Philippi's headlong rout we shared, I parted
from my targe, not well.

b.1.b fig.

   a 1300 Cursor M. 9972 (Cott.) Maria maiden, mild o mode‥standes vs for sceild and targe
[Laud tarche].    1536 Bellenden Cron. Scot. (1821) II. 181 Knawing weill that devine helpe is
the only targe and sicker munition of kingis and realmes.    a 1578 Lindesay Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.)
I. 127 Ane faithfull subiect and sicker tairge to the commone weill.    1599 Jas. I Βασιλ. Δωρον
(1682) To Rdr., To which hydra of diverslie enclined spectators, I have no targe to oppone.

†2.2 A name applied in the reigns of the first three Edwards to the King's private or privy seal
(perh. bearing a shield as its device). Obs.

   [1309 Rolls of Parlt. I. 444/2 Quant as Brefs de la targe, le Roy voet, qe l'Ordenance soit
gardee, qe en fust fait en temps le Roy son pere, laquele est en Chancellerie.    a 1315 Lib. de
Antiq. Leg. (Camden) App. 252 Ces lettres desuz son prive seal de la targe.    1315 Rolls of Parlt.
I. 339/1 Par Bref de la targe.    1347 Ibid. II. 193/1 Briefs soutz le grant Seal, & Letres soutz la
targe.]    c 1492 Gest Robyn Hode ccclxxxv. in Child Ballads III. 75/1 He toke out the brode targe
[v.r. seale], And sone he lete hym se.

†b.2.b (See quot.) Obs. rare.

   c 1440 Promp. Parv. 487/1 Targe, or chartyr, carta.

3.3 attrib. and Comb.: targeman, a man armed with a targe.

   ? 17‥ Battle of Sheriff-Muir (Cent. Dict.), He stoutly encounter'd the targemen.    1895 Daily
News 29 Oct. 6/5 The twin targe brooch that clasps her robe.

Tudenarda
bt
tude, an (?) ; f. A shield :-- Tude parma, Hpt. Gl. 521, 9. Tudenarda (tudena, randa (?), tuderanda (?) )
scutorum, 424, 5.

bts

ch

med

oed

þrȳþ-bord
bt
þrȳþ-bord, es; n. A strong shield, Elen. Kmbl. 302; El. 151. [Cf. Icel. þrūð-hamarr the mighty hammer of
Thor.]
bts

ch

med

oed

wig-bord
bt
wig-bord, es; n. A shield :-- He hēht him gewyrcean eallīrenne wīg-bord; wisse he gearwe, đæt him
holtwudu helpan ne meahte, lind wiđ līge, Beo. Th. 4667; B. 2339. Wīgbord scinon, Cd. Th. 207, 14;
Exod. 466.

bts

ch

med

oed

A SPEAR

ÆSC
bt
ÆSC; g. æsces; pl. nom. acc. æscas, ascas; g. æsca, asca; d. æscum, ascum; m; I. an ash-tree; fraxinus
excelsior :-- On ðone æsc to the ash-tree. Cod. Dipl. Apndx. 461; A. D. 956; Kmbl. iii. 450, 3. Æsc
fraxinus, Ælfc. Gl. 45; Som. 64, 98. II. the Anglo-Saxon Rune RUNE = æ, the name of which letter in
Anglo-Saxon is æsc an ash-tree, hence this Rune not only stands for the letter æ, but for æsc an ash-tree,
as, -- RUNE byþ oferheāh, eldum dȳre, stīþ staðule the ash-tree is over-high, dear to men, firm in its
place, Hick. Thes. vol. i. p. 135; Runic pm. 26; Kmbl. 344, 23. Se torhta æsc the remarkable Rune æsc,
Exon. 112a; Th. 429, 24; Rä. 43, 9. III. an ash-spear, a spear, lance; hasta fraxinea, hasta :-- Byrhtnōþ
wānd wācne æsc Byrhtnoth brandished his slender ashen spear, Byrht. Th. 132, 68; By. 43: 140, 59; By.
310. Ðe ðē æsca tīr æt gūðe forgeaf who to thee gave glory of spears in battle. Cd. 97; Th. 127, 10; Gen.
2108. Asca, g. pl. Exon. 78a; Th. 292, 15; Wand. 99. Æscum with spears. Beo. Th. 3548; B. 1772: Andr.
Kmbl. 2195; An. 1099. IV. because boats were made of ash, -- a small ship, a skiff, a light vessel to sail or
row in; navis, navigium, dromo :-- Hēt Ælfrēd cyng timbrian langscipu ongēn ða æscas king Alfred
commanded to build long ships against those ships, Chr. 897; Th. i. 174, 41. Æsc dromo, Wrt. Voc. 63,
34: 56, 24. [O. H. Ger. asc, m: O. Nrs. askr, m. arbor, fraxinus, vas ligneum, navis, gladius, Egils.] DER.
daroþ-æsc, ceaster-: æsc-rind.

bts

ch
æsc I. m. nap. asoas 'ash'-tree, Gl,KC; Mdf :
name of the rune for æ : (†) spear, lance :
ship, Æ. II. = æos

med

oed

ash, n.1

(æʃ)

Forms: 1–2 æsc, (3 asse, 4 aychs,) 4–5 assch(e, asch(e, 4–6 assh(e, 4–7 ashe, (5 aish, esche, 6
ach,) 6– ash.

[Common Teut.: OE. æsc is cogn. with ON. askr, OHG. ask, MHG. asch, mod.G. esche, OTeut.
*ask-oz.]

1. a.1.a A well-known forest tree, indigenous to Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, and
noted in Teutonic literature from the earliest times; having silver-grey bark, graceful pinnate
foliage, a peculiar winged seed or samara called the ‘ash-key,’ and very tough close-grained
wood valuable for implements.

b.1.b The tribe of trees Fraxineæ, family Oleaceæ, including the common ash (Fraxinus
excelsior) with several American species, and the manna or flowering ashes (Ornus Europæa and
rotundifolia).

   c 700 Epinal Gloss. 416 Fraxinus, aesc.    935 Chart. Æthelstan in Cod. Dipl. V. 221 On ðæne
ealdan æsc.    a 1300 W. de Biblesworth in Wright Voc. 171 De frene, of asse.    c 1305 St.
Kenelm 171 in E.E.P. (1862) 52 A gret asch‥stent in þulke place.    c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 5248 Þe
Emperour him liȝt a-doun anon, Vnder an Aychs.    c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 2064 Wilw, elm,
plane, assh.    1440 Promp. Parv., Esche, fraxinus.    1504 Plumpton Corr. 188 The okes are
sold‥& the aches.    1596 Spenser F.Q. i. i. 9 The warlike beech; the ash for nothing ill.    1769
Sir J. Hill Fam. Herbal (1812) 16 The Manna Ash is a lower tree than the common ash.    1847
Blackwell Malet's North. Antiq. 413 (tr. Edda) The ash Yggdrasill‥is the greatest and best of all
trees. Its branches spread over the whole world, and even reach above heaven.    1866 Johns in
Treas. Bot. 506 Several American species of ash resemble the European ash in general
appearance and qualities.    1872 Oliver Elem. Bot. ii. 207 The wood of the Ash is very tough and
elastic, and valued by cart- and wheelwrights.

2.2 The wood or timber of the ash-tree.

   c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. (1871) III. 500 An ymage‥of oke or of asshe.    c 1450 Merlin xxii.
390 A grete growe spere of aish.    1823 P. Nicholson Pract. Builder 260 Ash is a species of wood
very common in Britain. [See also 5.]

†3.3 The ashen shaft of a spear; a spear. Obs.

   a 1000 Beowulf 3548 Æscum and ecᴁum.    1607 Shakes. Cor. iv. v. 114 That body, where
against My grained Ash an hundred times hath broke.    1700 Dryden Pal. & Arcite iii. 513 The
tourney is allowed but one career Of the tough ash, with the sharp-grinded spear.

4.4 ground ash, a.4.a An ash sapling. b.4.b Applied locally to various umbelliferous herbs with
pinnate leaves, esp. the ashweed or bishopweed, and wild angelica (Britten and Holl.) mountain
ash, synonym of the rowan-tree or quickbeam (Pyrus Aucuparia); formerly also occas. of the
aspen (Populus tremula), called also quaking ash. wild ash, identified by the herbalists sometimes
with the mountain ash, sometimes with the Ornus of the continent.

   1552 Huloet, Ashe called a wylde ashe with greate leaues, Ornus.    1562 Turner Herbal ii. 71 a,
Wild ashe trees grow in the rooky or craggi mountaynes.    1578 Lyte Dodoens 748 Pliny and
Columella calleth it Ornus, and Fraxinus, syluestris‥In English, Quickebeame, feelde Ashe,
wild Ashe, and white Ashe.    1794 Martyn Rousseau's Bot. xxi. 291 Mountain Ash and the
Service‥have pinnate or winged leaves like the Ash.    1814 Wordsw. Excurs. vii. 709 The
Mountain Ash‥lifts her head Decked with autumnal berries.

5.5 Comb. (chiefly attrib.), as ash-bud, ash-plank, ash-spear, ash-staff, ash-tree, ash-wood; and in
many OE. compounds, in sense 3, as {æsc}-here a company armed with spears, æsc-pleᴁa
‘spear-play,’ war, æsc-róf ‘spear-famed,’ noble. Also ash-fly, ash-grub, a fly and grub found on
the ash-tree and used by anglers; ash-key, the winged two-celled seed or samara of the ash-tree;
ash-leaf, an early potato with leaves resembling those of the ash.

   a 1000 Judith 217 (Bosw.) Æt ðam æscpleᴁan.    Ibid. 337 Eorlas æscrófe.    1398 Trevisa
Barth. De P.R. xvii. lxii. (1495) 639 Yf a serpent be sette bytwene a fyre and asshe leuys: he woll
fle in to the fire.    1440 Promp. Parv., Asche tre, Fraxinus.    c 1589 Plaine Perc. (1860) 3 With a
quarter Ashe staffe on my shoulder.    1805 Scott Last Minstr. iii. vi, The tough ash-spear, so
stout and true.    1842 Tennyson Gardener's Dau. 28 More black than ashbuds in the front of
March.    1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 130/1 The timbers‥commonly in use in our carriage
factories are English ash-plank.

   1787 T. Best Angling (ed. 2) 24 Oak-fly, Ash fly, or Wood⁓cock fly, found on the body of an
Oak or Ash.    Ibid. 19 Bark-worm, or Ash-grub.    1676 Cotton Angler ii. 353 The Ash-grub‥is
plump, milkwhite‥with a red head.    1440 Promp. Parv., Esch key, Clava in fractinus.    1562
Turner Herbal ii. 6 a, Called in Inglishe ashe keyes because they hang in bunches after the
manner of keyes.    1795 Barker in Phil. Trans. LXXXV. 412 The hedge fruits were in great
abundance, excepting ash-keys.    1843 G. Darling in Proc. Berw. Nat. Club II. 77 The delicate
early ash-leaved kidney.    1845 Morn. Chron. 22 Nov. 5/2 The Wimborne kidneys‥are not
springing like the ash-leafs.

æsc-holt
bt
æsc-holt, es; nom. pl. holt; n. Ash-wood, an ash-wood spear; lignum fraxineum, hasta fraxinea :-- Æscholt
asceōc shook his ashen spear, Byrht. 138, 35; By. 230: Beo. Th. 665; B. 330.

bts

ch
æscholt† n. spear of ash-wood, spear-shaft,
lance (v. also Mdf).

med

oed

æt-gār
bt
æt-gār, es; m. [æt, gar a spear] A short spear or javelin, a. kind of dart or other weapon to cast at the
enemy; framea, Cot. 188: 86. [O. Frs. etgēr: M. H. Ger. azigēr: 0. H. Ger. az-kgr: 0. .IVrs. atgeirr.]
ate-gār, es; m. A javelin; framea. v. æt-gār.

bts
æt-gār. Add: æt- (æte-, ate-) gār; m. -gǣre; n. (The pl. seems sometimes used to gloss Latin sing.) :--
Falarica, i. theca gladii, telae genus vel hastae grandis vel lancea magna ætgār, Wrt. Voc. ii. 147, 9: 33,
49. Ætgāre framea, 36, 11: falarica (armatum), An. Ox. 8, 312. Ætegāre, Angl. xiii. 29, 46. Aetgaere
ansatae, Txts. 41, 167. Ætgaeru (-gāru. Sievers, Gram. § 273, ann. 4, takes this to be a u-stem) framea, 65,
922. Ætgēro (ægt&e-hook;ro, MS.) falarica, 63, 839. Ategāra falarica (v. 8, 312 above), An. Ox. 5023.
Ategārum falarica (v. Angl. xiii. 29, 46 above), 786. Ategāras ansatas, 2, 502. Ætgāras, Wrt. Voc. ii. 3,
68.

ch
æt-gǽre n., -gar m. spear, dart, javelin, Qi.
med

oed

ātor-spere
bt
ātor-spere,es; n. A poisoned spear; telum venenatum. v. āttor-spere, Exon. 105 a; Th. 399, to; Rä. 18, 9.

bts

ch
ātorspere n. poisoned spear, RD 18'.

med

sp re (n.(1)) Also sper(re, speare, speir(e & (in place names) spars-, esperes-, pers-; pl.
speres, etc. & sperus, speren & (early SWM) sperren, spæren.

[OE spere]

1.

(a) A thrusting weapon, spear; a horseman's spear, lance; a javelin, dart; also fig.; (b) ~ and (or)
sheld, knif (sword) or ~, sheld (sword) and ~, etc.; -- often used coll.; (c) ~ of pes (werre), a
blunted (pointed) spear; ~ garnished, a spear prepared for jousting; at his ~, in military service;
grounden ~, a sharpened spear; ?scottish ~, a small throwing spear of Scottish make [cp.
Scottish adj. (b)]; under a ~, armed; with speres ord, at spear-point, by the spear, by force; ben
~ and sheld (sheld and ~), to be a defense (for sb.); beren ~, wield power; casten ~ in the reste,
couchen ~, couch (one's) lance; dressen ~, point (one's) spear; (d) in cpds. and combs.: ~ berere,
one who wields a spear; ~ hed, q.v.; ~ lenge, the length of a spear, used as a measure of distance;
also, as adj.: as long as a spear-length; ~ lengthe, the length of a spear, used as a measure of
length, height, distance, etc.; ~ man, one who fights with a spear, a spearman; also fig.[quot. ?
a1449]; ~ pointe, the tip of a spear; ~ shaft, q.v.; ~ staf (tre), a spear shaft; ~ wort, q.v.; bor ~
[see bor n. 5.]; red ~, a spear of reed; -- used as a type of unreliability or frailty; also, ?some kind
of wind instrument made of reed, perh. a small flute or pipe[quot. c1430]; (e) in comparisons and
fig. expressions as a type of sharpness or pain; also in proverbs; ~ bite; ~ o lecherie, a pang of
lechery; (f) a spearhead; also, a spear shaft.

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2.

(a) The spear as an instrument of the Passion, the spear with which Christ's side was pierced; ~
wound; red ~, a spear of reed, an instrument of the Passion; (b) the emblematic weapon of the
Archangel Michael.
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3.

(a) The stinger of a bee or other insect; (b) an oxe goad, a prod.

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4.

A spearman, lancer; also, a troop of spearmen, a phalanx [quot. ?c1475]; mil. first ~, an officer in
charge of two hundred spearmen; harneised ~, an armored spearman.

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5.

(a) In surnames; (b) in place names [see Smith PNElem.2.137].

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oed
spear, n.1

(spɪə(r))

Forms: α. 1–7 {spere} (3 spære), 3–6 sper (5 sperre), 5–7 speere. β. 5–6 speir, 5 speire, speyre,
spayre, 6 spair. γ. 6–7 speare, 7– spear.

[OE. spere, = OFris. spiri, spere, sper (WFris. spear), MDu. spere, speer (Du. speer), OS. and
MLG., OHG. and MHG. sper (G. speer), ON. pl. spjǫr; MSw. spär and obs. Da. spær are from
MLG. It is doubtful whether L. sparus, hunting-spear, is related.]

I. 1.I.1 a.I.1.a A thrusting weapon consisting of a stout wooden staff of some length, on which a
sharp-pointed head, usually of iron or steel, is socketed or otherwise securely fixed; a lance; also,
a shorter or lighter weapon of this kind used for throwing.

α    c 725 Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) C 610 Contos, speoru.    c 893 K. Ælfred Oros. iii. xvii. §1 Þa
for he‥& funde hiene ænne be weᴁe licgan mid sperum tosticad.    c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. John
xix. 34 An ðara cempa mið spere sidu his untynde.    c 1000 Ælfric Saints' Lives xii. 55 Þæt hors
hine bær forð swa þæt spere him eode þurh ut.    c 1060 O.E. Chron. (MS. C) an. 1055, Ær þær
wære æniᴁ spere ᴁescoten, ær fleah ðæt Englisce folc.    a 1225 Ancr. R. 60 Þerefter heo schekeð
hire spere, & nehlecheð up on hire, &‥ȝiueð speres wunden.    c 1275 Passion our Lord 179 in
O.E. Misc., Mid speres and myd staues and oþe vele þinge.    c 1320 Sir Tristr. 1446 Wiþ a spere
feloun He smot him in þe side.    a 1400 Sir Perc. 191 Off alle hir lordes faire gere Wolde scho
noȝte with hir bere, Bot a lyttille Scottes spere.    1470–85 Malory Arthur i. x. 48 Vlfyus and
Brastias dressid theire speres and ranne to gyder with grete raundon.    1483 Cath. Angl. 354/2 A
Sperre for a bayre, excipulum, venabulum.    a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 36 b, The Scottes
dayly shipped long speres called Colleyne Clowystes.    1590 Spenser F.Q. i. i. 11 The
Champion‥to the Dwarfe a while his needlesse spere he gaue.

β    c 1400 Destr. Troy 6494 Two speirus full dispitus he sparet to cast.    14‥ Trevisa's Barth.
De P.R. xvii. xxxi. (Bodl. MS.), Dartes of reede‥so longe‥þt þei vse hem in stede of speirs.
1562 Winȝet Wks. (S.T.S.) I. 78 That knycht quha peirsit our Lordis syde with the speir.    1596
Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. II. 330 The Scotis ouerthrew monie Jnglismen with speiris.

γ    1524 St. Papers Hen. VIII, II. 115 Englishe speares, bowes, and billes.    1560 J. Daus tr.
Sleidane's Comm. 130 The chief Prophet‥thrusteth his speare into hym.    1630 R. Johnson's
Kingd. & Commw. 109 Some after the fashion of Italie, using a Scull, a Iacke, a Sword, and two
light Speares.    1667 Milton P.L. i. 292 His Spear, to equal which the tallest Pine Hewn on
Norwegian hills‥were but a wand.    1756–7 tr. Keysler's Trav. (1760) IV. 403 The spears of
both these champions are still shewn here.    1813 Scott Trierm. i. xvii, Four of the train
combined to rear The terrors of Tintadgel's spear.    1889 Baden-Powell Pigsticking 90 The short
or ‘jobbing’ spear is generally used throughout Bengal and Upper India.

b.I.1.b Without article, freq. coupled with shield, sword, etc., and used in a collective sense.

   c 1205 Lay. 548 Brutus‥mid sweord & mid spere al he todrof þes kinges here.    a 1250 Owl &
Night. 1022 He myhte bet teche ane beore To bere scheld and spere.    a 1300 Cursor M. 20817
To be þan for vs sper and scheild.    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xviii. 12 Wyth-oute spores other spere
spakliche he loked.    c 1400 Rom. Rose 5823 That she‥nyl‥smyte a stroke in this bataile, With
darte, ne mace, spere, ne knyf.    c 1470 Henry Wallace iv. 302 All‥Off that party that mycht
weild bow or sper.    1500–20 Dunbar Poems liv. 16 Quhai for hir saik, with speir and scheld,
Preiffis maist mychtelye in the feld [etc.].    1595 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 116/2 With jak, knaipisca,
speir and suord.    1611 Bible Jer. vi. 23 They shall lay hold on bowe and speare.    1725 Pope
Odyssey x. 169, I climb'd a cliff, with spear and sword in hand.    1810 Scott Lady of L. v. xi,
And still, from copse and heather deep, Fancy saw spear and broadsword peep.    1849 Aytoun
Lays Scott. Caval. 70 Why go you forth‥With spear and belted brand?

†c.I.1.c Const. of (peace or war). spear of peace, a blunt spear used in jousting. Obs.

   a 1400 Sir Degrev. 1177 Tak ether of ȝow a spere, Bothe of pes and of were.    Ibid. 1261 To
gret sperus of pese Bothe these lordes hem chese.    1508 Kennedy Flyting w. Dunbar 545
Deulbere, thy spere of were, but feir, thou yelde.

†d.I.1.d The sharp head of a pike. Obs. rare.

   1690 Exercise of Foot 121 Trail your Pikes with the Spears behind.    Ibid. 144 The Pikemen
Charge their Pikes to the Front, the Spears in a Line Breast high.
e.I.1.e Mil. One of the transverse spikes or poles of a cheval-de-frise.

   1823 Crabb Technol. Dict.    1828 Spearman Brit. Gunner (ed. 2) 142 Weight, Dimension, &c.
of Chevaux-De-Frize.‥ Barrel, Length 9 ft. 5 in. Spears, 20. Length 6 ft.    1834–47 J. S.
Macaulay Field Fortif. (1851) 82 The spears of the chevaux-de-frise should be so arranged as to
present three rows of points to the enemy.    1876 Voyle & Stevenson Milit. Dict. (ed. 3) s.v.
Chevaux de frise, Each length is composed of a barrel or stout beam‥, with strong sharp spears
driven through it, in two or more different directions.

2. a.I.2.a In transf. and fig. uses.

   c 897 K. Ælfred Gregory's Past. C. xxxv. 244 Ða speru ðære soðfæstnesse, ðæt sindon haliᴁra
ᴁewrita manunga.    a 1300 Cursor M. 28046 O licheri agayn þe spere Wit chastite þou sal þe
were.    c 1470 Henry Wallace ii. 231 Compleyne for hym that was your aspre sper.    1500–20
Dunbar Poems lxxxiv. 40 Inconstance‥; Secreit invy, and of dispyt the speir.    1546 J.
Heywood Prov. (1867) 29 Will is a shrewde boy.‥ A gentle white spurre, and at neede a sure
speare.    1593 Shakes. Rich. II, i. i. 171, I am‥Pierc'd to the soule with slanders venom'd speare.
1820 Shelley Prometh. Unb. i. 31 The crawling glaciers pierce me with the spears Of their moon-
freezing crystals.    1873 M. Arnold Lit. & Dogma (1876) 328 The spear of Butler's reasoning.
1930 R. Campbell Adamastor 60 A starved mongrel‥From where he crouched, a thrilling spear
of pain, Hurled forth his Alleluia to the sky.    1934 T. S. Eliot Rock ii. 78 Encompassed with
enemies armed with the spears of mistaken ideals.

b.I.2.b The ‘sack’; dismissal. Austral. slang.

   1912 in Stewart & Keesing Old Bush Songs (1957) 273 I've been many years a shearer and I
fancied I could shear, I've shore for Rouse of Guntawung and always missed the spear.    1941
Baker Dict. Austral. Slang 69 Get the spear, to be dismissed from a job.

†3.I.3 In allusive phrases or uses. a.I.3.a under a spear, under one banner, pennon, or flag. Obs.—
1

   1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 11861 So þat þer were To & tuenti kniȝtes vnder a spere.

†b.I.3.b to sell at the spear, to put, etc., under the spear, to sell by auction. to pass under the spear,
to ‘come under the hammer’. Obs.
   After the common L. phrase sub hasta vendere.

   1600 Holland Livy ii. xvii. 55 The rest of the inhabitants were sold at the speare in ouvert
market like slaves.    Ibid. xxiii. xxxii. 496 Their fields he would lay wast; sell their servants in
port sale at the speare.    1611 B. Jonson Catiline ii. i, When you see‥that‥their Houses, and
fine Gardens [are] giuen away, And all their goods, vnder the Speare.    1689 Evelyn Let. to
Pepys 12 Aug. in E.'s Diary (1827) IV. 319 The noblest library that ever pass'd under the speare
at outcry.    1709 Mrs. Manley Secret Mem. (1736) IV. 96 They persuaded him to put all the
Furniture of the House immediately under the Spear.

†c.I.3.c stroke of the spear: (see quot. and feather n. 11 b).

   1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl. s.v., The feather of a horse, called the stroke of the spear, is a
mark in the neck, or near the shoulder, of some Barbs [etc.].

4. a.I.4.a A soldier armed with or carrying a spear; a spearman. Now arch.

   c 1205 Lay. 7453 Com of Muriene, moni spere kene.    a 1400 Sir Degrev. 319 The best mene
that he ledde, He hadd y-lefft home to wedde, With ffyffty spers is he ffledd.    c 1450 Contin.
Brut 580 One Watkyn Ruskyn, a gentill man and a gud spere, was slayn at þe wynnyng of þe
same bullewerk.    1475 Bk. Noblesse (Roxb.) 38 Ser John Chaundos,‥whiche had bene in many
batailes, and had the governaunce of Ml. speris.    a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 55 The Erle of
Huntyngdone,‥with twoo M. archers, and foure hundred speres, was sente into Gascoyne.    a 
1578 Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) II. 39, ijc speiris witht the earle of Angus and ijc
witht my lord governour.    1618 Bolton Florus (1636) 55 Caius Minutius, a speare in the fourth
Legion.    1820 Scott Monast. xxxv, That plump of spears that are spurring on so fast.    1885
Ruskin Pleas. Eng. 113 He sent‥for some German knights, and got five hundred spears.

†b.I.4.b (See quots. and pensioner 2.) Obs.

   1539 Cranmer Let. to Cromwell in Rem. (1833) I. 296 Edward Askew‥is by some nobleman
preferred unto the room of one of these new spears in the Court.    1540 Wriothesley Chron.
(Camden) I. 112 This yeare [1539] the kinge made many yong gentlemen speres, and gave them
5 l. a peece.    a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 6 Also this yere [1509], the kyng ordeined fiftie
Gentle menne to bee speres, euery of theim to haue an Archer, a Dimilaunce and a Custrell, and
euery Spere to haue three greate Horses.    Ibid. 237 b, In December [1539] were appointed to
wayte on the kynges hyghnes person fiftie Gentelmen called Pencioners or Speares, lyke as they
were in the first yere of the kyng.

c.I.4.c A hunter or sportsman who uses a spear; a pig-sticker.

   1849 E. B. Eastwick Dry Leaves 75 One of the best spears who ever chased the wild boar over
wide plain and tangled hill.    1863 Trevelyan Compet. Wallah (1866) 139 Mr. Mildred, an indigo
planter, a first-rate spear and rough-rider.

5. a.I.5.a A sharp-pointed weapon used for various purposes; esp. one for catching fish, a leister.
   Also with defining terms, as eel-spear, fish-spear, salmon-spear, trout-spear.

   1551– [see salmon n.1 4].    1555– [see eel-spear].    1611 [see fish n.1 6 b.].    a 1700 Evelyn
Diary 22 July 1654, Abounding in trouts catch'd by speare in the night.    1766 State of Proc., A.
Macdonald v. Dk. Gordon Pursuer's Proof 13 The fish‥were killed and taken out by spears.
1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) VI. 208 They renew their attacks, till the whale begins to be quite
enfeebled‥, when they plunge their longer spears into various parts of its body.    1815 Scott
Guy M. xxvi, This chase, in which the fish is pursued and struck with barbed spears,‥is much
practised at the mouth of the Esk.    1840 D. P. Blaine Encycl. Rural Sports §2889 The salmon is
also caught with a spear, which they dart into him as he swims near the surface of the water.

b.I.5.b A pointed iron bar. rare.

   1607 Dekker Jests G ij, If they haue‥taken note of any casement, without a speere going vp in
the middle.    Ibid. G ij b.

c.I.5.c A prong of a fork. (Cf. speer n.2)

   1739 Baker in Phil. Trans. XLI. 135 A Young Woman‥received a Wound just in the Pupil of
her right Eye, by the Spear of a common Fork.    1748 Aery Ibid. XLV. 412 She received a
Wound in the Cornea of her right Eye, by the Spear of a common Fork, which also divided the
Uvea.

6. a.I.6.a pl. The thorns or prickles of a plant, the spines or spikes of a hedgehog, sharp fins of a
fish, etc. Chiefly poet.; now rare.

   [1503 Dunbar Thistle & Rose 130 Vpone the awfull Thrissill scho beheld, And saw him kepit
with a busche of speiris.]    1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 279 The Hedghog rowleth vpon the
Serpent‥and killeth his aduersary, carrying the flesh vpon his speares.    1693 Dryden, etc.
Juvenal iv. (1697) 91 Mark the pointed spears That from thy Hand on his pierc'd Back he wears!
Note. He makes the Flatterer call the sharp Fins rising on the Fishes back, Spears.    1821 Clare
Vill. Ministr. II. 161 The very bramble, weeping 'Neath dewy tear-drops that its spears surround.
1827 ― Sheph. Cal. Feb. ix. 23 The hedgehog,‥As shepherd-dog his haunt espies,‥rolls up in
a ball of spears.

b.I.6.b The sting of a reptile or insect, esp. of a bee. Now Sussex dial.

   1608 Topsell Serpents 172 Nor yet he when [he] with his angry mouth Doth byte, such paines
and torments bringeth As other Serpents‥When with his teeth and speare he stingeth.    1609 C.
Butler Fem. Mon. A iij b, The speere she hath is but little and not halfe so long as the other Bees.
Ibid. A v b, Hir speere she [the bee] is very loth to vse, if by any other meanes she can shift hir
enimy.    a 1700 Ken Edmund Poet. Wks. 1721 II. 90 Into his tendrest Parts‥the pertinacious
Legion dart their spears.    1721 Bradley Philos. Acc. Wks. Nat. 149 Our Gnat, which is of the
unarmed Kind, having no Spear in its Mouth.    1875 Parish Sussex Dial., Spear, the sting of a
bee.    1889 Longman's Mag. July 269 The best thing‥when you have taken ‘the spear’ out, is to
rub the place with a leek.

7.I.7 A beam or ray of light.

   c 1850 Lowell Above & Below i. iii, 'Tis from these heights alone your eyes The advancing
spears of day can see.    1894 Hall Caine Manxman 277 A spear of candle-light shot from her
door.

II.II attrib. and Comb.

8.II.8 Simple attrib., in the sense ‘of or belonging to a spear’, as spear-blade, †spear-block, spear-
butt, †spear-pile (= shaft), spear-tip, etc.; also denoting distance or measurement, as spear-cast,
spear-length, spear-throw; and miscellaneous, as spear-arm, spear-forest, spear-print, spear-
storm, spear-stroke, spear surge, spear-thrust.
   1880 Browning Dram. Idylls, Echetlos 5 Up, back, out, down—was the *spear-arm play.

   1880 F. Witti Diary in J. Hatton New Ceylon iv. (1881) 99 To the one end of the blowpipe is
always made fast a *spear-blade.

   1543 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. VIII. 223 For certane *speir blokis boucht‥to his grace in
Ayr,‥xv li.

   1853 Kingsley Hypatia vi. 73 An obedience which the Roman soldiers could only have
compelled by hard blows of the *spear-butt.

   1865 Morris Jason x. 209 As in the stream they lay A *spear-cast from the shore.

   1946 S. Spender European Witness xiv. 217 A country of clustered *spear-forests and gloomy
heaths.

   13‥ Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 2316 He sprit forth spenne fote more þen a *spere lenþe.    c 1400 Destr.
Troy 3698 Hit spirit vp spitiously fyue speire lenght.    1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. i.
viii. 9 The ditch‥was only seuen fadomes broade, and twoo speare lengths deep.    1890 Doyle
White Company xxxvi, He fell within a spear-length of the English line.

   1638 R. Brathwait Psalmes Paraphr. cli, Six hundred iron shekels masse upon my *speare-pile
playes.

   1911 E. Pound Canzoni 4 Deep in my heart that *spear-print stays, That wound I got beyond
the waters.

   1848 Lytton K. Arthur iii. xlviii, May Harold, thus confronting all, Pass from the *spear-storm
to the Golden Hall.

   1835 Court Mag. VI. 35/2 The captive English,‥awaiting the *spear-stroke with unblenching
fortitude.

   1900 Chesterton Wild Knight & Other Poems 103 The crest of the *spear-surge.

   1884 J. Colborne Hicks Pasha 46 Their many-coloured *spear-tassels dropping on their

shoulders.

   1892 Rider Haggard Nada 28 The men were running‥with the length of a *spear-throw
between them.

   1825 Scott Talism. xxvi, With sword-cut and *spear-thrust all hack'd and pierced through.

   1930 T. S. Eliot tr. St.-J. Perse's Anabasis 43 The horsemen‥feeding on their *spear-tips the
pure disasters of sunshine.
   1857 Gosse Omphalos xii. 362 It falls to the ground before the *spear-touch of our Ithuriel.

   1895 Cath. Mag. Aug. 210 The *spear-wound in His side.

9.II.9 General combs. a.II.9.a With agent-nouns, as spear-bearer, spear-fisher, spear-fisherman,

spear-hurler, spear-planer.

   1449 in Sharp Cov. Myst. (1825) 193 Item, ij sperberrers‥ij d.    c 1515 Cocke Lorell's B. 10
Tankarde berers,‥and spere planers.    1876 G. W. Cox Gen. Hist. Greece ii. i. 103 His spear-
bearer Gyges.    1895 J. Menzies Cynewulf's Elene 25 The great spear-hurler, who the hosts to
battle led.    1951 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries of Australia ix. 309 Members will not‥seek
quarrels with line⁓fishermen or other spear-fishermen regarding priority rights of fishing at any
place.    1962 Underwater Swimming (‘Know the Game’ Ser.) 19/1 The spearfisherman should
always carry a knife.    Ibid., An added safety device is to have a float anchored in the diving area
to which the spearfisher can go to rest or leave his catch.    1982 Times 21 July 3/3 Dr Paul
Cragg, a biologist, was in favour of resuming grants for spearfishermen.

b.II.9.b With verbal ns. (objective or instrumental), as spear-bearing, spear-breaking, spear-

fishing (hence, as a back-formation, spear-fish vb. intr. and trans.), spear-pricking, etc.; also
similative, as spear-flashing.

   1861 Paley Æschylus (ed. 2) Pers. 149 note, Archers, or Persians, are again opposed to *spear-
bearing Greeks.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 265 *Spear-brandishing Polydamas came as an avenger.

   1823 Scott Quentin D. xxvi, I should otherwise have had *spear-breaking between you and my
cousin of Orleans.

   1962 Times 6 Apr. 7/2 Sail, snorkel, skin-dive, *spear⁓fish in tropical Florida.    1963
Harper's Bazaar Jan. 65/1 On the Côte d'Azur, many of the big fish have been‥spear-fished out
of sight.    1973 J. Jones Touch of Danger xix. 106, I spearfished.‥ Sonny‥was no adept with
flippers or speargun.

   1601 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 392/2 Lie cobill, curroch et *speir fischingis super aqua de Spey.
1945 Spear-fishing [see flipper n.2 1 b].    1960 M. A. Gabrielsen et al. Aquatics Handbk. xiv.
102/1 Spear fishing is becoming a popular competitive as well as recreational sport.    1973 J.
Jones Touch of Danger xix. 107 Sonny was against spearfishing for sport.

   1937 Blunden Elegy 78 Against high blue *Spear-flashing white the spire.

   1895 Sir H. Maxwell Duke Britain viii. 117 Forced by heavy blows and *spear-prickings to
resume progress.

   1865 Morris Jason vi. 485 *Spear-shaking warrior and slim-ankled maid.

   1895 K. Grahame Gold. Age 98 His *spear-splintering crash of tourney.

   1828 P. Cunningham N.S. Wales (ed. 3) II. 42 By means of their perpetual wars and the
practices of *spear-throwing, child-murder, and concubinage.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 26 *Spear-wielding auxiliaries from many cities.

c.II.9.c With past pples. (instrumental), as spear-bound, spear-fallen, spear-famed, spear-pierced,

spear-shaken, spear-stuck, spear-tipped, etc.

   1816 H. G. Knight Ilderim 280 The *spear-bound steeds that ready harness'd fed.

   1824 Symmons Agamemnon 104 The blood-drop‥from the *spear-fallen man Drips apace.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 42 These, *spear-famed Idomeneus commanded.

   1863 J. H. Newman Verses Var. Occas. 33 Faint shadows of the *spear-pierced side.

   1947 S. Spender Poems of Dedication iv. 56 Above the destroyed city reborn city‥Tower of
wings climbing *spear-shaken skies.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 43 He killed Mynetes and *spear-skilled Epistrophus.

   1943 D. Gascoyne Poems 1937–42 5 Whose are these hollow red-filmed eyes And
thorn⁓spiked head and *spear-stuck side?

   1870 Morris Earthly Par. III. iv. 364 In forefront of battle let him fall; Or‥on some foeman's
*spear-swept wall.

   1954 W. Faulkner Fable 132 The *spear-tipped iron fence beyond which the three sentries
flanked the blank door beneath the three morning-windy flags.

d.II.9.d With adjs., as spear-headed, spear-pointed, spear-straight, etc.

   1561 Burning St. Paul's ⁋2 (Camden), A long and a speare pointed flame of fier.    1598 Barret
Theor. Warres ii. i. 20 A speare-headed staffe, sharpe pointed with iron.    1753 Chambers' Cycl.
Suppl. s.v. Phaseolus, The American phaseolus, with a sinuated and spear-pointed leaf.    1777
Potter Æschylus (1779) I. 184 Sev'n chiefs of high command, In arms spear-proof, take their
appointed stand.    1846 Landor Exam. Shaks. Wks. II. 295 Rushes spear high.    1848 J. R.
Lowell Poems 2nd Ser. 69 A stem‥Standing spear-straight in the waist-deep moss.    1873 Spon
Workshop Rec. Ser. i. 59/2 No spear-pointed drill can be tempered hard enough not to break.
1919 J. Masefield Reynard the Fox ii. 107 With spear-straight stern.

e.II.9.e In some specific names, as spear-bill, spear-billed (grebe), spear-leaf, spear-nosed (bat).

   1827 Griffith tr. Cuvier II. 9 We may here add the Lunette,‥spear-nosed bat.    Ibid. V. 69
Phyllostoma Hastatum (Spear-leaf Phyllostome, or Javelin Bat).    1884 Coues N. Amer. Birds
793 Æchmophorus, Spear-bill [Index, Spear-billed] Grebes.
10. a.II.10.a Special combinations, as spear-axe, a spear with an axe-shaped head; spear-carrier, a
carrier of a spear, a spearman: used transf. as (a) orig. Theatr. slang, an actor with a walk-on part;
hence, an unimportant participant; (b) U.S. colloq., a proponent or ‘standard-bearer’ (cf.
spearhead 1 b); †spear-egg-shaped a., Bot. lanceolate-obovate; †spear-field, the field of battle;
†spear-foot (see quot.); spear gun, a type of weapon used in spearfishing which operates by firing
a detachable harpoon; also attrib.; hence spear-gunner; spear-hand, the hand with which a spear is
usually held, thrown, etc.; the right hand or side; spear-hook U.S., a kind of snap-hook or spring-
hook for taking fish (Cent. Dict.); spear-nail (see quot.); spear-play, exercise or fighting with
spears; spear-pyrites Min., a variety of marcasite or white iron pyrites; spear-running, jousting
with spears; now arch.; spear-side (after OE. on spere-healfe), the male line of descent; †spear
silver Sc., a form of military tax or levy; †spear-stick, a spiked walking-stick; spear tackle
Austral., an illegal tackle in rugby football in which a player is lifted and thrust to the ground
head first; hence as v. trans.; spear-thrower, an implement used to aid the throwing of a spear.

   1865 J. H. Ingraham Pillar of Fire xi. 129 The offensive weapons of the [Egyptian] army are
the‥*spear-axe [etc.].

   1960 New Yorker 13 Aug. 97/1 The ‘Quartet’ is full of characters who in one novel may seem
irritatingly superfluous *spear-carriers,‥but who in the ‘Quartet’ turn out to be members of a
literary repertory company.    1963 Times 20 May 12/5 Most of those spear-carriers not only
don't know where the United States is but they don't know where they are themselves.    1967
N.Y. Times 21 May 26/1 Dr. King had ‘emerged as the public spear⁓carrier of a civil
disobedience program’.    1976 Times 18 Mar. 10 In Wisconsin on the same day Representative
Morris Udall, the ‘liberal-progressive’ spear carrier, will have to win to stay in the race.    1981
N. Marsh Black Beech & Honeydew (rev. ed.) x. 215 The students‥would begin to accept the
enormous challenge of a Shakespeare play and their own real importance, if only as spear-
carriers, in doing so.    1982 Sunday Sun-Times (Chicago) 20 June 100/1 By the time Breakfast at
Wimbledon telecasts are beamed into the United States on Fourth of July weekend, American
tennis pros Davis, Dunk and Hardie will have vacated their present lodging and be long gone
from the venerable tournament that they graced momentarily as spear-carriers.

   1796 Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) I. 82 *Spear egg-shaped,‥shaped like a spear towards the
base, and like an egg towards its extremity.    Ibid. II. 474 Flower-scales spear-eggshaped, in
pairs.

   c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 1238 To speid thame our the *spere-feild enspringing thai sprent.

   1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl., *Spear-foot, of a horse, is the far⁓foot behind.

   1951 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries Austral. ix. 303 The sport of fishing with spears or
*spear-guns under water‥has had only a brief history.    Ibid. 304 Most Australian spear-gun
fishermen use a gun with rubber as the motive power.    1979 J. Leasor Love & Land Beyond i. 7
The‥five⁓pronged fork of an underwater spear gun.

   1951 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries Austral. ix. 308 Those responsible for such an attitude
know little of the *spear⁓gunner's activities.
   1728 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Hand, *Spear-Hand, or Sword-Hand, is used for a Horseman's Right-
Hand.    1824 Symmons Agamemnon 12 On the spear-hand and by the seat of state.

   1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 2255/2 *Spear-nail, one with a spear-shaped point.

   c 1640 J. Smyth Lives Berkeleys (1883) I. 325 Given to his Esquiers for to play at *Spearplay
at Bristoll, 26s 8d.    1885 C. J. Lyall Anc. Arab. Poet. 96 Steeds, in the spear-play skilled.    1894
Geogr. Jrnl. III. 479, I had the pleasure of witnessing a spear-play between two parties.

   1837 Dana Min. 405 White Iron Pyrites, Pyrites rhombicus.‥ *Spear Pyrites.    1865 Watts
Dict. Chem. III. 402 White Iron pyrites, Marcasite, Radiated pyrites, Spear pyrites.

   c 1550 Rolland Crt. Venus iv. 597 Than tuik thay in Iurnayis of Tornament, And *speir rinning,
with mony Interpryis.    1823 Scott Quentin D. xiv, At the spear-running of Strasbourg.

   1861 Pearson Early & Mid. Ages 122 In his [Alfred's] will he declares his intention of‥
leaving his land on the *spear-side.    1870 Lowell Study Wind. 246 Such and such qualities he
got from a grandfather on the spear side.

   1496 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. I. 324 To gadir in the *spere siluer of Perth, Forfare, and
Striuelinschire.

   1801 tr. Gabrielli's Myst. Husb. II. 135 His *spear stick, pelisse, &c. were at the Curate's.

   1969 Sun-Herald (Sydney) 13 July 36/2 Canterbury were penalised for a *spear tackle on
Cavanagh.    1977 Telegraph (Brisbane) 8 Nov. 3/3 He was injured after he was allegedly spear-
tackled.‥ A player is spear-tackled when an opponent tackles low, lifts the man with the ball
high, turns him over and thrusts him into the ground head first.    1871 Tylor Prim. Cult. I. 60 The
highest people known to have used the *spear-thrower proper are the Aztecs.

b.II.10.b In the names of plants, trees, etc., as spear arum, †crowfoot, -fern, -flower, -lily, -
(plume) thistle, -wood (see quots.).

   1845–50 A. H. Lincoln Lect. Bot. App. 220/1 *Spear arum, Rensselaeria.

   1597 Gerarde Herbal ii. ccclv. 815 Called‥in English *Speare Crowfoote, Spearewoort, and
Banewoort.

   1867 W. W. Smyth Coal & Coal-mining 37 The Odontopteris, or tooth-fern, and Lonchopteris,
or *spear-fern, are [fossil] genera which occur less frequently.

   1891 Cent. Dict., *Spear-flower, a tree or shrub of the large tropical and subtropical genus
Ardisia of the Myrsineæ.

   1889 J. H. Maiden Usef. Native Pl. 621 Doryanthes excelsa.‥ ‘*Spear Lily.’ ‘ Giant Lily.’
   1855 Miss Pratt Flower. Pl. III. 231 (*Spear Plume Thistle.) Heads of flowers large, mostly
solitary.

   1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl. s.v. Thistle, The broad-leaved *spear-Thistle.    1777 Jacob Cat.
Plants 19 Carduus lanceolatus, Spear-Thistle.    1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm III. 1066 The
biennial spear-thistle, Cnicus lanceolatus, the spines of which breaking in the flesh, give acute
pain when touched.    1872 H. Macmillan True Vine vii. 320 In the common spear-thistle, each
plant produces upwards of a hundred seed-vessels.

   1866 Treas. Bot. 1077/2 *Spearwood, Acacia doratoxylon.    1874 Ibid. Suppl. 1343/2
Spearwood, also Eucalyptus doratoxylon.

c.II.10.c In the names of fishes, as spear-beak, dog, -fish (see quots.).

   1896 Lydekker Roy. Nat. Hist. V. 507 The extinct Jurassic *spear-beaks (Aspidorhynchus)
constitute a second family.

   1848 Zoologist VI. 1975 Picked Dog, *Spear Dog, Spinax acanthias.

   1882 Jordan & Gilbert Syn. Fishes N. Amer. 119 Carpiodes cyprinus.‥ Quillback; *Spear-
fish; Sail-fish; Skimback.    Ibid. 420 Tetrapturus albidus, Bill-fish; Spear-fish.    1888 Goode
Amer. Fishes 241 In Cuba, the Spear-fishes are called ‘Aguja’.

bangār
bt

ch
bangār (o) m. murdering spear, B2031.

med

oed

daroþ
bt
daroþ, daraþ, dareþ, es; m. [derian to hurt] A DART, spear, javelin, weapon; telum, jaculum, hasta :--
Daroþ sceal on handa the spear shall be in the hand, Menol. Fox 502; Gn. C. 21. Forlēt daroþ of handa
fleōgan let a dart fly from the hand, Byrht. Th. 136, 11; By. 149: 139, 17; By. 255. Reōrdode rīces hyrde,
daraþ hæbbende the realm's guardian spake, raising his spear, Exon. 66 b; Th. 246, 27; Jul. 68. Daroþas
wǣron weō ðære wihte darts were an affliction to the creature, 114 a; Th. 438, 8 ; Rä. 57, 4. Þurh daroþa
gedrep through the stroke of darts, Andr. Kmbl. 2886; An. 1446. Dareþa of darts, Chr. 937; Th. 207, 11;
Æðelst. 54. Ða ne dorston dareþum lācan who durst not play with javelins, Beo. Th. 5689; B. 2848.
[Prompt. darte: Wyc. dartis, pl: R. Brun. darte: Chauc. dart: O. H. Ger. tart lancea: Swed. dart, m. a
dagger: Icel. darraðr, m. hasta.]
daraþ, dareþ a dart, spear, javelin, Exon. 66 b; Th. 246, 27; Jul. 68: Beo. Th. 5689; B. 2848. v. daroþ.

bts

ch
daroð† m. dart, spear, javelin, daroSa lāf
those faft by spears, survivors of a battle,

med

oed

deoreþ-sceaft
bt
deoreþ-sceaft, es; m. [deoreþ = daroþ a dart, sceaft a shaft, handle] A dart-shaft, a spear; hasta :-- Under
deoreþsceaftum amid the dart-shafts, Cd. 93; Th. 119, 23; Gen. 1984.

bts
daroþ-sceaft. v. deoreþ-sceaft in Dict.

ch
daroþsceaft (deoretS-) m. javelin shift,

med

oed
shaft, n.2

(ʃɑːft, -æ-)

Forms: 1 sceft, 1–3 {sceaft}, scæft, 3 scaft, saft, 3–4 ssafte, scheft, 4 shafth, 4–5 schafft, schafte,
4–7 schaft, shafte, 5 chaft(e, 4– shaft; rare 4 schaf, 4–5 shaffe, 4, 7 shaff, 7 shafe.

[Com. Teut. (wanting in Gothic): OE. sceaft masc. = OFris. skeft (Hettema), OS. skaft masc.
(MLG., MDu., Du. schaft, schacht fem.), OHG. scaft masc., pl. scefti (MHG., mod.G. schaft
masc.), ON. skapt neut. (Sw., Da. skaft):—OTeut. *skafto-, *skafti-z:—preTeut. *skapto-, -ti-s.
   App. cogn. w. L. scāpus shaft, stem, shank; somewhat more doubtfully with Gr. (Dor.) σκᾶπτον
staff (Ion., Att. σκηπτο- in σκηπτοῦχος staff-bearer, σκῆπτρον staff, sceptre, σκήπτειν to prop.).
The Teut. word might, with regard both to form and meaning, be plausibly explained as a passive
ppl. derivative from the root of shave v.; but it is doubtful whether the supposed cognates can be
similarly accounted for.]

1. a.1.a The long slender rod forming the body of a lance or spear, or of an arrow. Also of a staff,
harpoon, etc.

   c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 143/7 Contus, spereleas sceaft.    1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls)
8658 He sset þe kyng [William Rufus] in atte breste þat neuereft he ne speke Bote þe ssafte þat
was wyþoute grisliche he to brek.    1382 Wyclif 1 Sam. xx. 5 The brother of Goliath Jethee,
whos spere schaft was as the beme of websters.    c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 504 (Morris), His
sleep, his mete, his drynk is him byraft, That lene he wexe, and drye as eny schaft.    1506 Acc.
Ld. High Treas. Scot. III. 358 Item, for xij staf schaftis‥xxiiij s.    1533 Ibid. VI. 188 For v
dosane shaftis to Jedburcht stavis coft to his grace.    1688 Holme Armoury iii. xvii. (Roxb.)
113/1 Parts of a Pike. The shaft, for military service is reputed 16 or 18 foot long or there about.
1801 T. Roberts Engl. Bowman 293 Shaft, an arrow: properly so called when it wants only the
head.    1814 Scott Ld. of Isles vi. xvi, His broken weapon's shaft survey'd The King, and careless
answer made.    1836 Landor Pericles & Aspasia Wks. 1846 II. 419, I can compare the
Lacedemonians to nothing more fitly than to the heads of spears without the shafts.    1907 C.
Hill-Tout Brit. N. Amer., Far West vii. 132 Points being held to the haft of the harpoon by long
plaited lines. When the fish is struck these points detach themselves from the shaft.

b.1.b A spear or lance. Now arch.

   c 1000 Ælfric Lives Saints xii. 53 His sceaft ætstod ætforan him‥swa þæt þæt spere him eode
þurh ut.    c 1205 Lay. 23907 Þe an an his ænde‥and þæ oðer an his ænde‥heo quehten heore
scaftes [c 1275 saftes].    13‥ Guy Warw. 1404 So miȝti strokes þer wer ȝiuen, Þat strong
schaftes al to-driuen.    c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 1594 So harde þay acoupede on hur scheldes þat
broke buþ boþe hure schafte, & þe peces fulle on þe feldes þe hedes on þe tre by-lafte.    c 1430
Chev. Assigne 301 And whenne þat shafte is schyuered take scharpelye another.    1483 Cath.
Angl. 57/2 A Chafte; vbi spere, &c.    1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. ii. 627 War from stubborn
Myrtle Shafts receives: From Cornels Jav'lins; and the tougher Yeugh Receives the bending
Figure of a Bow.    1754 Gray Poesy 53 Hyperion's march they spy, and glitt'ring shafts of war.
1847 Tennyson Princess v. 492 All the plain,—brand, mace, and shaft, and shield—Shock'd.

2. a.2.a An arrow. cloth-yard shaft, see cloth-yard.

   c 1400 Rom. Rose 1747 So at the last the shaft of tree I drough out, with the fethers three.    c 
1480 Test. Ebor. (Surtees) III. 253 Item xiiij shaffe of bolts and shoytyng shaftes, price xiiij s.
Item v shaffe of rowyng shaftes iiij s. Item xlvij shaffe of childre shaftes.    1483 Cath. Angl. 57/2
A Chafte; vb[i] Arowe.    1541 Act 33 Hen. VIII, c. 9 §3 Euerie man, hauynge‥men children‥
shall prouide‥a bowe and two shaftes.    1596 Shakes. Merch. V. i. i. 140 In my schoole dayes,
when I had lost one shaft, I shot his fellow in the selfesame flight The selfesame way.    1599 B.
Jonson Ev. Man out of H. v. iv, Draw me the biggest shaft you haue out of the butt you wot of.
1624 Bp. Hall True Peace-maker Wks. (1625) 539 Thou wounded heart [sic]‥; alas, the shaft
sticks still in thee, or if that bee shaken out, the head.    a 1711 Ken Edmund Poet. Wks. 1721 II.
236 Shafts aim'd at Trees can never mount so high, As those we shoot directly tow'rds the sky.
a 1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. iv. (1878) 129 The air was darkened by the shafts from the hosts
of English archers.

b.2.b Proverbial phr. See bolt n.1 1 b.

   1594 Nashe Terrors of Nt. Wks. 1904 I. 368 To make a shaft or a bolt of this drumbling subiect
of dreames, from whence I haue bin tost off and on I know not how.

†c.2.c In various occasional scientific uses, as transl. of L. sagitta: (a) Astr. The Pole-star and its
companion; (b) Anat. (see quot. 1552); (c) Geom. A versed-sine: cf. arrow n. 6. Obs.

   1551 Recorde Cast. Knowl. (1556) 263 The lesser Beare‥is the chiefe marke whereby
mariners gouerne their course in saylinge by nyghte, and namely by 2 starres in it, which many
do call the shafte.    1552 Udall tr. Geminus' Anat. B vij b, In the bone of the temple is a bone
lyke a smal pyller, or a nedle, and therefore called the nedlelyke bone,‥the quyll bone, the
shafte, and the staffe bone.    1594 Blundevil Exerc. ii. (1597) 49 b, A.H. is the Shaft, called in
Latine Sinus versus. [See also arrow n. 6.]

†d.2.d An ‘arrow’ on a plan or diagram showing the direction. Obs. rare.

   1730 A. Gordon Maffei's Amphith. 293 The Bending of the Stairs; the Knowledge of which‥
will be much facilitated by the Shafts which shew their Extension.

e.2.e loosely. A missile. rhetorical.

   1786 tr. Beckford's Vathek (1836) 80 By my formidable art, the clouds shall pour grape-shot in
the faces of the assailants, and shafts of red-hot iron on their heads.    1817 Shelley Rev. Islam vi.
xi, Then the shaft Of the artillery from the sea was thrown More fast and fiery.    1835 W. Irving
Tour Prairies 196 The trees and thickets with which it was bordered would be sufficient to turn
aside any shaft of the enemy.    1838 Prescott Ferd. & Isab. i. x. (1846) I. 427 Some threw away
their arms; hoping by this means to facilitate their escape, while in fact it only left them more
defenceless against the shafts of their enemies.

f.2.f fig. and in figurative context.

   1576 Gascoigne Droome Doomes Day Wks. 1910 II. 409 To wound and wearye theyr soules,
with‥the shaftes of sundrye shamefull concupyscences.    1600 Fairfax Tasso ii. xxxiv, Death
hath exchang'd againe his shafts with loue, And Cupid thus lets borrow'd arrowes flie.    1608
Hieron Help Devot. Wks. 1632 II. 760 Let his children be as chosen shafts in thy quiuer.    1667
Milton P.L. iv. 763 Here Love his golden shafts imploies, he lights His constant Lamp.    1779 J.
Moore View Soc. Fr. I. xxx. 281 It is‥to be regretted, that he allowed the shafts of his ridicule to
glance upon the Christian religion.    1847 Tennyson Princess ii. 444 And often came Melissa
hitting all we saw with shafts Of gentle satire, kin to charity, That harm'd not.    1873 Dixon Two
Queens xix. vii. IV. 41 Having suffered for a whole year past from the shaft of love.

g.2.g transf. A beam or ray (of light, etc.), a streak of lightning, etc. Chiefly poet.
   13‥ E.E. Allit. P. A. 982 By-ȝonde þe brok fro me warde keued, Þat schyrrer þen sunne with
schaftez schon.    Ibid. C. 455.    a 1400–50 Wars Alex. 1544 A Mitre,‥Stiȝt staffull of stanes þat
straȝt out bemes, As it ware shemerand shaftis of þe shire son.    1798 Bloomfield Farmer's Boy,
Summer 264 When midnight and the frightful Tempest come, The Farmer wakes, and sees‥The
angry shafts of Heaven gleam round his bed.    ? 1799 Coleridge On a Cataract 13 It embosoms
the roses of dawn, It entangles the shafts of the noon.    1864 Tennyson En. Ard. 588 The sunrise
broken into scarlet shafts Among the palms and ferns and precipices.    a 1878 W. C. Bryant Leg.
Delawares 4 A thousand shafts of lightning pass.    1898 Watts-Dunton Aylwin xiv. iv, Masses of
vapour‥blazing‥whenever the bright shafts of morning struck them.

3. a.3.a A pole, flagstaff; spec. †a may-pole; also †the pole on which the candle lighted at the
‘new fire’ was carried in the ceremonies of Easter Eve. Also, †a gate-post. rare.

   a 1000 Boeth. Metr. i. 11 Fana hwearfode scir on sceafte.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 3899 Moyses
ðor made a wirme of bras, And heng et hege up on a saft.    1419 26 Pol. Poems 71 Of here
banere of grace, god broken haþ þe shaft.    1428 in Peacock Eng. Ch. Furniture (1866) 179 Et
Thomas harpmaker pro emendacione de la schafte xj d.    c 1450 in Aungier Syon (1840) 351 The
holy water schal go before, the schafte after with ij tapers unlyght.‥ Aftyr the sensyng of the
fyre the schafte schal be lyght only.    1522 Churchw. Acc. St. Giles, Reading 17 Paid for a
whope of Iron to the Shafts of the churche gate iij d.    1598 Stow Surv. 107 On May day‥a high
or long shaft (or May pole) was set vppe there,‥which shaft when it was set on end‥was higher
then the Church steeple.    a 1819 Rees Cycl. XXXII, Set, a term used for a pole or shaft, used to
shove boats along a canal, &c.    1852–63 Burn Techn. Dict. i. (ed. 4), Trabe,‥pole or shaft of an
ensign or colour.

†b.3.b A guild in the parish of St. Dunstan's, Canterbury; ? named from a pole carried by the
warden in procession. Also, ? the pole itself. Obs.

   1486 Churchw. Acc. St. Dunstan's, Canterb. in Archæol. Cant. XVI. 294 The acompte of the
Schafte made be‥[the two] then beyng wardeyns.    1511 Ibid. 321 We haue receyud of
Wyllyam Carpenter of his gyfte a gyrdyll for to bere the Schaft contynuyng for euer from
Warden to Wardeyn.    1535 Ibid. 98 For the expensis of the dyner, Seynt Dunstones lyght,
mendyng of the Shaft, and other charges xxiij s. xj d.    1539 Ibid. 102 Wardens of a Brotheryd
caulyd the Shafte in the parysch of Seynt Dunstone.

4.4 A stem, columnar or straight portion of something. a.4.a The stem or trunk of a tree. Now
rare.

   1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. i. (Bodl. MS.), Þe schafte of a tree þat streccheþ fro the rote
vp to þe toppe is propreliche cleped lignum.    1449 Pecock Repr. i. vi. 28 Tho bowis grewen out
of stockis or tronchons, and the tronchons or schaftis grewen out of the roote.    1605 Bacon Adv.
Learn. ii. xvii. §4. 62 If you will haue sciences growe, it is lesse matter for the shafte or bodie of
the Tree, so you looke well to the takinge vp of the Rootes.    1825 Cobbett Rur. Rides 98 By far
the finest tree that I ever saw in my life. The stem or shaft is short.    1842 Mrs. Kirkland Forest
Life I. 203 They were the shafts of bee-trees, found in the forest.    1889 B. Harte Cressy x. II.
113 The dim colonnade of straight pine shafts.
b.4.b In various Natural History uses. (a) The main stem or scape of a feather. [So G. schaft.] (b)
The part of a hair between the root and the point. (c) Anat. The middle portion of a long bone. (d)
Ent. The scape of an antenna or of a halter. †(e) Bot. = style (1787 Withering Brit. Pl. ed. 2,
passim).

(a)    1748 Phil. Trans. XLV. 161 The Shafts of the Tail Feathers are very stiff.    1826 Stephens
in Shaw Gen. Zool. XIV. i. 177 The white on the shafts of the feathers is broader.    1886 P. L.
Sclater Catal. Birds Brit. Mus. XI. 345 Feathers of head and neck lanceolate and with shining
shafts.

(b)    1851 Carpenter Man. Phys. (ed. 2) 200 The constituent fibres of the shaft are marked out by
delicate longitudinal striæ, which may be traced in vertical sections of the hair.    1876 Duhring
Dis. Skin 33 In considering the hair we distinguish two portions,—the shaft, and the root.

(c)    1835–6 Todd's Cycl. Anat. I. 431/1 The long bones‥are never exactly cylindrical, being
always contracted in the middle or shaft, and enlarged at each end.    1858 Holden Hum. Osteol.
(1878) 165 The ‘shafts’ are slightly concave towards the palm, to form the hollow of the hand.

c.4.c The part of a candlestick which supports the branches.

   1388 Wyclif Exod. xxv. 31 Thou schalt make a candil⁓stike‥and thou schalt make the schaft
[1382 staf, 1535 Coverdale, 1611 shaft] therof, and ȝerdis, cuppis, and litle rundelis, and lilies
comynge forth therof.    Ibid. 33 Sixe ȝerdis, that schulen be brouȝt forth of the schaft.    a 1586
Cartwright in Answ. to Cartwright 88 The shaft‥of the candlesticke.

†d.4.d ‘The Spire of a Church-Steeple’ (Phillips 1706). [Cf. F. flèche.] Obs.

   c 1450 Chron. London (Kingsford 1905) 156 The Steple of Seynt Pawlis chirche was sette on
fire aboute the medyll of the Shafte in the tymbir.    1581 Churchw. Acc. Dunmow (MS.) fol. 49
In repayringe the steple in stone worke xxxixli. iiis. id. Item, repayringe the shafte and tymber
therof, vli. xvis. ixd.    1612 Peacham Gentl. Exerc. i. vi. 19 Practise to draw small and easie
things,‥as a cherry with the leafe, the shaft of a steeple [etc.].    a 1700 Evelyn Diary 20 Aug.
1654, Famous is the Steeple [at Grantham] for the exceeding height of the shaft, which is of
stone.

e.4.e Of a chimney, a blast-furnace: (see quots. and chimney-shaft s.v. chimney 11).

   c 1450 Nominale (Harl. MS. 1002) 146 b, Caminus, a chymney. Epicaustorium, þe chaft þer-of.
a 1548 in J. Bayley Tower Lond. (1821) i. App. p. xxv, To fynyshe x. shaftes upon x. chymneys.
1662 Gerbier Brief Disc. (1665) 10 Neither are those high Shafts of Chimnies real Ornaments to
a Building.    1706 Phillips (ed. Kersey), Shaft,‥the Tunnel of a Chimney.    1836–50 Parker
Gloss. Archit. (ed. 5) s.v., The part of a chimney-stack between the base and cornice is called the
shaft.    1855 Franke Beil's Technol. Dict. II. 457/2 Shaft of a blast-furnace (the internal cavity of
the furnace), der Schacht; Cuve, cheminée.

f.4.f Arch. The body of a column or pillar between the base and the capital. Also the ‘die’ of a
parapet. See also quot. 1842.
   1483 Cath. Angl. 332/1 A schafte of a pylar, stilus.    1598 R. Haydocke tr. Lomazzo i. xxiv. 86
The shaft or trunke of the columne is to be diminished a fourth parte at the toppe.    1624 Wotton
Archit. 31 They [the Columns] are all Diminished or Contracted‥from one third part of the
whole Shaft vpwards.    1756–7 Keysler's Trav. (1760) II. 461 The pedestal [of this pillar]
consists of one stone, the base of eight, the torus of one, the shaft of twenty-three, and the capital
of one.    1823 P. Nicholson Pract. Build. 310 The shaft or die, which is the part immediately
above the plinth.    1842 Gwilt Archit. Gloss., Shaft of a King Post, the part between the joggles.
1849 Freeman Archit. 16 Then gradually bringing within its power the details of shaft and
capital.

g.4.g The upright part of a cross; esp. the part between the arms and the base.

   1781 Ledwich in Vallancey Collect. de Rebus Hibern. II. 446 The arms were broken, but the
shaft [of the market cross of Kilkenny] remained adorned with beautiful figures.    1810 Scott
Lady of L. iii. viii, A slender crosslet form'd with care,‥The shaft and limbs were rods of yew.
1836–50 Parker Gloss. Archit. (ed. 5) s.v. Cross, In some instances they had small niches‥round
the top of the shaft below the cross.    1870 F. R. Wilson Ch. Lindisf. 90 The limbs and a portion
of the shaft of a Saxon cross were found.    a 1887 Jefferies Field & Hedgerow (1889) 279 One of
them has retained its top perfect, and really is a cross, not a shaft only.

h.4.h The stem or long straight handle of a tool, etc.; the shank of an anchor; the stem of a pipe;
†the stalk or foot of a goblet or wine-glass.

   1530 Palsgr. 266/1 Shafte of any edged tole, manche.    1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780),
Shank, the beam or shaft of an anchor.    a 1837 J. Hogg Tales & Sk. I. 297, I then took out my
brandy bottle, and a small crystal glass without the shaft, that I carried in my pocket.    1841
Catlin N. Amer. Ind. xxix. (1844) I. 235 The shafts or stems of these pipes.    1851 Greenwell
Coal-trade Terms, Northumb. & Durh. 46 Shaft,‥the handle of a pick, hack, shovel, or maul.
1855 Franke Beil's Technol. Dict. II. 457/2 Shaft of a forge hammer (the helve or handle of the
hammer), der Helm, Stiel; Manche.    1897 Encycl. Sport I. 473/1 (Golf), Shaft, the handle of the
club.

i.4.i †(a) Of a cannon: = chase n.3 2. (b) ‘The forward, straight part of a gun-stock’ (Knight Dict.
Mech. 1875).

   1626 Capt. Smith Accid. Yng. Seamen 32 Her shaft or chase, her trunnions.

5. a.5.a Arch. A slender column, esp. one of ‘the small columns which are clustered round pillars,
or used in the jambs of doors or windows, in arcades and various other situations’ (Parker Gloss.
Archit.).

   1835 R. Willis Archit. Mid. Ages ii. 27 But the compound archway did not long remain in this
simple form, its component archways were early decorated in various ways with shafts and
mouldings.    1838 Lytton Leila i. ii, The ceiling of cedar-wood‥was supported by slender
shafts, of the whitest alabaster.    1873 Dixon Two Queens i. i. I. 8 Images of the goddess on her
jasper shaft.    1878 McVittie Christ Ch. Cathedral 67 The inside moulded jambs are decorated
with six short limestone shafts.

b.5.b U.S. An obelisk or column erected as a memorial.

   1847 Emerson Poems, Hymn Wks. (Bohn) I. 494 Spirit, that made those heroes dare To die,
and leave their children free, Bid Time and Nature gently spare The shaft we raise to them and
thee.    1873 B. Harte Washington in N. Jersey in Fiddletown, etc. 93 The gray shaft that
commemorated the Morristown dead of the last civil war.    1878 Joaquin Miller Songs of Italy
49 The whole country round vaunts our deed and the town Raised that shaft on the spot.

†6.6 A kind of balance: = auncel, pounder (app. orig. auncel's shaft).

   1429, 1439 [see pounder n.1].    1502 [see auncel].

7. a.7.a One of the long bars, between a pair of which a horse is harnessed to a vehicle; a thill.
Also (? U.S.) ‘the pole of a carriage, also called tongue or neap’ (Webster 1828–32).

   1613 Purchas Pilgrimage (1614) 325 The shafts or beam of Gordius his cart.    1725 Pope
Odyss. xv. 208 The bounding shafts upon the harness play.    a 1764 Lloyd Cobbler of
Cripplegate's Let. 124 The racer stumbles in the shaft, And shews he was not meant for draft.
1794 W. Felton Carriages (1801) I. 61 The Shafts of a Carriage are the side framings, by which it
is supported by the horse.    1894 K. Grahame Pagan P. 77, I found him smoking his vesper pipe
on the shaft of his cart.

b.7.b Either of the two side-pieces of a ladder which support the rungs or steps.

   1888 Stevenson Across the Plains (1892) 197 The weedy spokes and shafts of the ladder.

c.7.c (See quot.)

   1825 J. Nicholson Oper. Mech. 630 The sides of this table [for casting sheet lead]‥are guarded
by a frame or edging of wood, 3 inches thick, and 4 or 5 inches higher than the interior surface,
called the shafts.    Ibid. 631 So that its ends, which are notched‥, may ride upon the shafts.

8.8 Mech. A long cylindrical rotating rod upon which are fixed the parts for the transmission of
motive power in a machine; also, a separable portion of a line of shafting.
   Also with qualifying word indicating a specific kind of shaft, as crank, paddle, propeller, screw
shaft, countershaft, etc.: see those words.

   1688 Holme Armoury iii. 340/2 The Shaft [of a Wind-Mill], that on which the Sail Rods are
set.    1764 Croker, etc. Dict. Arts s.v. Mill, The undershot-wheel, upon whose shaft is fixed a
spur or cog-wheel.    1814, etc. [see journal n. 10].    1825 J. Nicholson Operat. Mechanic 43 In
forming couplings, great care should be taken to make them fit, so that the coupled shaft may
move as though of the same piece with the driving shaft.    1841 R. Willis Princ. Mechanism 44
note, Axis is the general and scientific word, shaft the millwright's general term, and spindle his
term for smaller shafts.    1873 J. Richards Wood-working Factories 4 The last shaft, or the one
farthest from the engine, can be driven at a higher speed than the other shafts to suit joiners'
machines on an upper floor.    1887 D. A. Low Machine Draw. (1892) 30, Fig. 25, which
represents a brake shaft carrier of a locomotive tender.

9.9 Weaving. Each of a pair of long laths between which the heddles are stretched; also applied to
the pair taken together. Also in parasynthetic compounds with prefixed numeral, as four-shaft,
ten-shaft adjs., designating makes of cloth.
   Although no early examples have been found, the sense is certainly old; the G. schaft and Du.
schacht are similarly used. Cf. ‘thre-schaptyd cloth, triplex’ (Promp. Parv., c 1440): see three III.
2.

   [1801 see lam n.2]    1839 Ure Dict. Arts, etc. 1230 The heddles being stretched between two
shafts of wood, all the heddles connected by the same shafts are called a leaf.    1878 Barlow
Weaving 173 With four shafts and twenty pairs of leashes‥the effect that may be produced will
be noticed at ABCDE and F.    Ibid., At D the leashes are raised, and the shafts also.    a 1904 W.
Thornton in Eng. Dial. Dict. s.v., [Obs. in W. Yorksh.] Long thin flat rods of wood, upon which
the ‘gems’ or ‘healds’ were stretched. The stretching was effected by a ‘top’ and ‘bodom’ shaft,
and the whole was also termed a ‘shaft’, when describing the pattern or make of cloth to be
produced, as ‘four shaft’, ‘ten shaft’, &c.

†b.9.b Sc. A kind of woollen cloth. Obs.

   [Prob. generalized from designations like four-shaft, ten-shaft, etc.: see above.]

   1797 Statist. Acc. Scot., Aberd. XIX. 208 Cloths manufactured from the above wool,‥three
quarters to yard broad seys, sarges, shafts, plaidings, baizes, linseywoolseys, jemmies, and
stripped apron stuffs.

10.10 In various slang uses. a.10.a The penis. Also †shaft of delight.

   [1719 T. D'Urfey Wit & Mirth IV. 72 It is a Shaft of Cupid's cut, 'Twill serve to Rove, to Prick,
to Butt.]    1772 G. A. Stevens Songs, Comic, & Satyrical 11 For Cupid's Pantheon, the Shaft of
Delight Must spring from the Masculine Base.    1971 B. W. Aldiss Soldier Erect 45 It was never
enough merely to lower your trousers—they had to come off,‥so that you could crouch there
naked but for your shirt, frantically rubbing your shaft.

b.10.b A human leg. U.S.

   1935 A. J. Pollock Underworld Speaks 103/2 Shaft, a woman's leg.    1939 C. Morley Kitty
Foyle 95 If anyone showed a good shaft Pop would wink at me.

c.10.c U.S. An act or instance of unfair or harsh treatment; slighting, rejection, ‘the push’; esp. in
to give or get the shaft.

   1959 Amer. Speech XXXIV. 155 A girl or boy who makes a play for another's date is snaking.
‥ If he succeeds, the loser gets the shaft (sometimes with barbs), the purple shaft, or the maroon
harpoon, depending upon the degree of injury to his pride.    1960 Wentworth & Flexner Dict.
Amer. Slang 461/1 Shaft‥, an act or an instance of being taken advantage of, unfairly treated,
deceived, tricked, cheated, or victimized; a raw deal. Usu. in ‘to get the (or a) shaft’. Fig., the
image is the taboo one of the final insult, having someone insert something, as a barbed shaft, up
one's rectum.    1964 Mad Mag. July 14 Looks like somebody gave him the shaft!    1977 Amer.
Speech 1975 L. 65 She gave him the shaft after he broke their date last weekend.    1979 Mod.
Photography Dec. 86/2, I would give more of my business to Minolta but for the company's
uncooperative, anti⁓consumer thinking. Doubtless there are many such as myself who have
gotten the shaft.

11.11 attrib. and Comb. a.11.a In sense 2 (arrow, etc.), as shaft-arm, †shaft-end, shaft-hand, shaft-
head, shaft-maker; shaft-armed, shaft-like, shaft-straight, shaft-strong adjs.; †shaft-wise adv., ? in
cylindrical form.

   1801 T. Roberts Engl. Bowman 293 *Shaft-arm, Shaft-hand, the arm, the hand, employed in
drawing the arrow.

   1790 Cowper Iliad i. 18 His hands charged with the wreath And golden sceptre or the God
*shaft-arm'd.

   1545 R. Ascham Toxoph. ii. Wks. (1904) 116 Yf I should shoote at a line and not at the marke,
I woulde alwayes loke at my *shaft ende.

   1801 *Shaft-hand [see shaft-arm supra].

   1545 R. Ascham Toxoph. ii. Wks. (1904) 115 To looke at your *shafte hede at the lowse, is the
greatest helpe to kepe a lengthe that can be.    1821 Byron Sardan. iv. i. 90 A huge quiver rose
With shaft-heads feather'd from the eagle's wing.

   15‥ J. Bryan Ps. cxxvii. 7 in Farr S.P. Eliz. II. 335 Straight, *shaft-like sprowts in shape and
mind.    1899 R. B. Sharpe in Daily News 21 Feb. 6/2 A long shaft-like plume.

   1904 Windle Preh. Age Eng. iv. 80 Here the object was‥to shape off the roughnesses of a
stick, so as to convert it into an arrow-shaft—for which reason this kind of scraper is sometimes
called a ‘*shaft-maker’.

   1849 C. Brontë Shirley II. v. 127 Her *shaft-straight carriage and lightsome step.

   1519 W. Horman Vulg. 105 b, All preciouse stonys may be made *shaft wyse, saue pearlys.
Omnes gemmæ teretes fieri possunt, extra vnum vnionem.

b.11.b In sense 5 a (Arch.), as shaft-architecture, shaft-cap, shaft-ring.

   1851 Ruskin Stones Ven. I. viii. §xxiii, The earliest and grandest shaft architecture which we
know, that of Egypt.    1882 Archæol. Cant. XIV. 364 The segmental arch of its head springs not
from shaft-caps but from vertical stilts.    1909 Century Dict. Suppl., Shaft-ring, an annular
band‥which seems to surround a shaft of a column. It is often the wrought edge of a stone plate
which separates two stones that make up a shaft, the inclosing ring being an appearance only.
c.11.c In sense 4 h (handle), as shaft-hole Archæol., the hole in an axe-head or similar implement
for the insertion of the haft or handle.

   1852–63 Burn Techn. Dict. ii. (ed. 4), Shaft prop, servante.    Ibid., Shaft stay, cravate.    1865
Lubbock Preh. Times iii. (1878) 62 The British lance-heads frequently have loops at the side of
the shaft-hole,‥which is never the case with Danish specimens.    1894 J. Macintosh Ayrsh. Nt.'s
Entert. 201 A stone axe‥having a shaft-hole one inch in width.    1928 [see core-casting s.v. core
n.1 16].    1958 W. Willetts Chinese Art I. ii. 75 (heading) Objects derived from the shaft-hole
adze.    1971 Listener 7 Jan. 14/1 (caption) Copper shaft-hole tools of the Balkan late neolithic.

d.11.d In sense 7 a (thill of a carriage, etc.): as shaft-bar, shaft-bender, shaft-bolt, shaft-jack,
shaft-loop, shaft-man, shaft-ring, shaft tug; shaft-horse, the horse which goes in the shafts.

   1802 C. James Milit. Dict., *Shaft-bars, are two pieces of wood to fasten the hind ends of the
shafts together, into which they are pinned with wooden pins.

   1881 Instr. Census Clerks (1885) 56 Coach making‥*Shaft Bender.

   1852–63 Burn Techn. Dict. ii. (ed. 4), *Shaft-bolt, boulon de limoniėre.

   1769 Wesley Jrnl. 28 July, The *shaft-horse‥boggled and turned short.    1886 Ruskin
Præterita I. vi. 182 The four horses were driven by one postillion riding the shaft horse.

   1875 Knight Dict. Mech., *Shaft-jack, (Vehicle) an iron attaching the shafts to the axle.

   Ibid., *Shaft-loop, (Harness) the ring of leather suspended from the gig-saddle to hold the thill
or shaft.

   1881 Instr. Census Clerks (1885) 56 Coach making‥*Shaftman.

   1802 C. James Milit. Dict., Rings, in artillery, are of various uses such as, the *shaft-rings to
fasten the harness of the shaft-horse by means of a pin.

   1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit. Rural Sports iii. iii. iv. 543 A buckle and strong loop on each side,
called the *Shaft Tug, by which the shaft is supported.

e.11.e Ornith. (sense 4 b), as shaft-mark, shaft-spot, shaft-streak, shaft-stripe; shaft-tailed bunting,
Latham's name for one of the buntings of the genus Emberiza; shaft-tailed whidah, widow bird, a
dark-coloured African weaver-bird, Vidua regia, having long tail-feathers with bare shafts.

   1884 J. H. Gurney Diurnal Birds Prey 157 The dark *shaft-marks much narrower than in the
female [Kestrel].

   1888 P. L. Sclater Argentine Ornith. I. 164 Above plumbeous, with slight darker *shaft-spots.

   1874 R. B. Sharpe Catal. Accipitres B. Mus. 438 Crown rufous, with blackish *shaft-streaks.
   1867 P. L. Sclater & Salvin Exotic Ornith. 71 There are linear elongated *shaft-stripes on the
head and on portions of the under plumage.

   1783 Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds II. i. 183 *Shaft-tailed Bunting.

   1881 F. & C. G. Oates Matabele Land & Victoria Falls facing p. 220 (caption) *Shaft-tailed
Whydah Bird.    1900 A. C. Stark Birds S. Afr. I. 148 Shaft-tailed Widow Bird.‥ The four
central, elongated tail-feathers are webbed at their ends‥, the rest of them consists of bare shaft.
1948 C. D. Priest Eggs of Birds breeding S. Afr. 135 Shaft-tailed Whydah‥undoubtedly
parasitic.    1974 Sci. Amer. Oct. 96/2 The shaft-tailed widow bird of South Africa‥mimics the
repertory of its host, the violet-eared waxbill.

f.11.f In sense 8 (axle or revolving bar), as shaft-bearing, shaft-boss, shaft-bracket, shaft-

coupling, shaft-drive (so shaft-driven), shaft-eye, shaft-gearing, shaft-governor, shaft-head, shaft-
passage, etc.; shaft-alley Naut. (see quot. 1884); also used attrib. to designate unofficial or
unreliable information or its source, attributed to gossip in shaft-alley; shaft horsepower, brake
horsepower, spec. power delivered to a propeller shaft or the shaft of a turbine; shaft turbine (see
quot. 1958).

   1884 Naval Encycl. 732/1 *Shaft-alley, a passage extending from the engine-room to the
stern‥in which is contained the propeller-shaft and its bearings.    1922 L. Hisey Sea Grist 155 It
was rumored by shaft alley wireless that we would reach Antwerp, Belgium, in two days.    1941
R. G. M. Ehlers Diary of Ship's Surgeon (1944) 67 A ‘shaft alley’ rumor brought word that all
ships had been ordered out of Hong Kong.    1945 Sun (Baltimore) 30 Aug. 7–0/5 It's the job of
these six men to go down to the nethermost portion of this ship in ‘Shaft Alley’, where the big
propeller shafts whirl.

   1875 Knight Dict. Mech., *Shaft-bearing.

   1863 Barry Dockyard Econ. 236 This is 42 feet in length, and, with its sole and *shaft-boss,
weighs 40 tons.

   1894 W. H. White Man. Naval Archit. (ed. 3) 415 (Cent. Suppl.), Stems, sternposts, *shaft-
brackets, rudders, etc., are now commonly made of cast steel instead of forged iron or steel.

   1906 Westm. Gaz. 26 June 4/1 As regards transmission, fourteen of the cars are employing
chains, as against twenty relying on *shaft drive.

   1906 Daily Chron. 14 Nov. 9/3 These cars are *shaft-driven.

   1835 Ure Philos. Manuf. 34 The recent innovations in‥adjusting the movements of the system
of *shaft-geering.

   1898 Engineering Mag. XVI. 146/2 The Design and Setting of *Shaft Governors.

   1825 J. Nicholson Operat. Mechanic 130 A gudgeon from the end of each cylinder runs into an
iron fastened to the *shaft-head.
   1908 A. E. Tompkins Marine Engin. (ed. 3) v. 61 The torsion-meter is used to measure this
angular twist between two points of a shaft, and from this angle the *shaft horse-power is
calculated.    1974 Petroleum Rev. XXVIII. 490/1 The high shaft horsepower was the
conditioning factor for this proportion of pilot fuel.

   1874 Thearle Naval Archit. 115 The bulkheads of the *shaft passages are sometimes made
watertight.

   1958 Chambers's Techn. Dict. Add. 1013/1 *Shaft turbine, any gas turbine aero-engine wherein
the major part of the energy in the combustion gases is extracted by a turbine and delivered,
through appropriate gearing, to a shaft.    1970 Lambermont & Pirie Helicopters & Autogyros of
World (ed. 2) 147 It had two shaft-turbine engines mounted on the cabin top instead of two Pratt
and Whitney piston engines.

g.11.g Weaving (sense 9), as shaft harness, shaft monture.

   1878 Barlow Weaving 168 The second [contrivance] is generally used in weaving the richest
silks now made, and is termed the split harness, or ‘shaft monture’.    Ibid. 170 The above
contrivance entirely dispenses with a separate set of treadles to work the shaft harness.

h.11.h shaft-furnace, ‘a high furnace, charged at the top and tapped at the bottom’ (Raymond
Mining Gloss. 1881).

   1874 Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 393 Those shaft-furnaces which use charcoal as fuel.

______________________________

Additions 1993

[4.] [h.]4.h After ‘pipe’ add: the pole of a paddle, to which the blade is attached (cf. loom n.1 5).

   1893 J. D. Hayward Canoeing iii. 27 The paddle generally used with the paddling‥canoe, is
that known as the double blade; it consists of a shaft with a blade at each end.    1986 Practical
Woodworking 349/1 It is normal for the paddle blades to be fixed at right angles to each other on
the shaft so the upper blade passes through the air in a ‘feathered’ mode.
dēaþspere
bt

ch
dēaðspere n. deadly spear, RD463.

med

oed

EOFOR-spere
bt

ch
eoforspere (u2) n. boar-spear, OEG756.

med

oed

eofor-spreōt
bt
eofor-spreōt, eofer-spreōt, es; m, A boar-spear; vēnābŭlum, Cot. 200. v. eofer-spreōt.
eofer-spreōt, es; m. A boar-spear; contus ad vēnātiōnem ūsĭtātus :-- Mid eoferspreōtum with boar-spears,
Beo. Th. 2879; B. 1437. v. eofor-spreōt.

bts
eofor-spreōt. For Cot. 200 substitute :-- Eoborspreōt (ebor-) vena- @bt_d0191bula, Txts. 105, 2089.
Eoforspreōtum (cf. eofursputum, Angl. xiii. 29, 40) venabulis, Wrt. Voc. ii. 76, 44. [Cf. O. H. Ger. ebar-
spioz lata hasta.]

ch
eoforsprēot n. boar-spear, GL.

med

oed
sprit, n.1

(sprɪt)
Forms: α. 1, 4 {spreot}, 4–5 sprete, 7–9 spreet. β. 4, 7 spret, 5–7 sprett(e. γ. 5–6 spryt, sprytt,
sprite (7 spright), 5, 7–8 spritt, 6– sprit.

[OE. spréot, = MDu. (Du. and WFris.) spriet, MLG. spryet, spriet, (hence G. spriet) and spreet,
NFris. sprit, spret, ultimately related to sprote1 and sprout v.1]

1.1 A pole, esp. one used for propelling a boat; a punting-pole; †a spear.

   a c 725 Corpus Gloss. C 609 Contis, spreotum.    c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 143
Trudes, uel amites, spreotas.    1023 in Thorpe Charters 318 Anes mannes lenge þe healt anne
spreot on his hand and strecþ hine swa feor swa he mæᴁ aræcan into þere sæ.    13‥ St. Cristofer
300 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 458 A lang sprete he bare in hande To strenghe him in þe
water to stande.    13‥ K. Alis. 858 (Linc. MS.), Þe þrid day þey gan aryue, Þey swymmed wiþ
spreot,‥And bryngiþ schipes to þe lond.    c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 12653 Thei brende bothe mast
& wynlase, Sterne & stere, ore & spretes.    c 1440 Promp. Parv. 470/2 Sprete, or qvante,‥
contus.

β    c 1350 Will. Palerne 2754 Sone as þe schipmen seie him out lepen, hastili hent eche man a
spret or an ore.    a 1400 Octouian 601 A sprette ouyr the bord they caste.    1530 Palsgr. 274/2
Sprette for watermen, picq.    1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. xviii. v. 111 Antoninus‥set his
course against our State and Common-wealth, not (as they say) with spret nor oare, with
shooving, or haling,‥but even with spred and full sayle.    1687 Shadwell Tenth Sat. Juvenal 38
Contus signifies a Quant or Sprett, with which they shove Boats.

γ    c 1435 Torr. Portugal 181 Torrent undyr hys spryt [= spear] he sprent, And abowght the body
he hyme hente.    a 1450 Octavian 469 Some hente an oore,‥some a sprytt, The lyenas for to
meete.    1583 T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. iii. 126 b, This Arke‥was rowed neither with
sprites, nor ores,‥but [driven] by wheeles wrought within her.    1606 Holland Sueton. 116 A
number of mariners, who with their sprits, poles and oares should beate‥their carkasses.    a 
1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia 321 Sprit, a pole to push a boat forward.    1903 Longman's Mag. Jan.
216 You could not perceive when the flat bit of wood at the end of the sprit touched it [i.e. the
bottom of a mere].

2.2 Naut. a.2.a ‘A small boom or pole which crosses the sail of a boat diagonally from the mast to
the upper hindmost corner of the sail, which it is used to extend and elevate’ (Falconer).

   13‥ E.E. Allit. P. C. 104 Wiȝt at þe wyndas [they] weȝen her ankres, Sprude spak to þe sprete
þe spare bawe-lyne.    1399 Rolls of Parlt. III. 444/2 Par le rumper d'un cabel, rope, sprete, ou
mast d'ascun Shoute.    1417 in For. Acc. 8 Hen. V, G/1, j dialle, j Soundynglyne, j Roffe Sprite
in Balingera Regis.    1536 in Marsden Sel. Pl. Crt. Adm. (1894) I. 54 Possessione virge, Anglice
a yard or a spyryt [sic].    1716 Phil. Trans. XXIX. 497 This Machine I suspended from the Mast
of a Ship, by a Spritt which was sufficiently secured by Stays to the Mast-head.    1769 Falconer
Dict. Marine (1780) s.v., The lower end of the sprit rests in a sort of wreath or collar called the
snotter.    1856 Kane Arct. Expl. I. xxiv. 316 A stouter mainsail of fourteen-feet lift with a spreet
eighteen feet long.    1913 Act 2 & 3 Geo. V, c. 31 §39 A pilot flag‥to be placed at the mast
head, or on a sprit or staff.
b.2.b (See quot.)

   1846 Young Naut. Dict. 293 A Sprit, or Spur, in a sheer⁓hulk is a spar for keeping the sheers
out to the required distance.

3.3 attrib., as sprit pole, sprit rig, sprit staff, sprit topmast, sprit topsail, sprit yard.

   1485 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 49 Spritt yerds, j; Spritte sailes, j.    1497 Ibid. 300 Fore
yerdes, j; sprete yerdes, j.    1611 Cotgr., Miquelot,‥a poore, pettie, vagabond Pedler, that with a
spritstaffe crosses from place to place.    1627 Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. vii. 31 Your Spret
and Spret top-saile.    1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) s.v. Yard, Sprit-topsail yard equal to the
fore top gallant-yard.    1894 Outing XXIV. 84/2 The sprit rig cannot be said to be pretty.    1903
Longman's Mag. Jan. 216 Under the influence of the silent sprit-pole it seemed to move by some
voluntary self-contained power.

franca
bt
franca, an; m. A javelin, lance; lancea, frămea, hasta :-- He lēt his francan wadan þurh dæs hysses hals he
let his javelin go through the youth's neck, Byrht. Th. 135, 59; By. 140. He ðone forman man mid his
francan ofsceāt he shot the foremost man with his javelin, 134, 1; By. 77. Francan wǣron hlūde the
javelins were loud, Cd. 93; Th. 119, 20; Gen. 1982 [Icel. frakka]. v. Grm. Gesch. D. S. p. 359.

bts
franca. Add :-- Stōd his franca begleddod mid Julianes blōde, Hml. S. 3, 266. Ic geann mīnum hlāforde
mīnes swyrdes mid fetele and ðārtō twā targan and twēgen francan, C.D. iii. 304, 30.

ch
franca m, lance, javelin, Æ

med

oed
Frank, n.1 and a.1

(fræŋk)

Forms: 1 Franca, Fronca, 3 Franke, 4–7 Fran(c)k(e, (8 Franc), 7– Frank.

[ad. L. Franc-us, F. Franc; a name of Teut. origin, repr. OHG. Franko = OE. Franca:—prehistoric
*Frankon-.
   It is usually believed that the Franks were named from their national weapon, OE.
{franca} (:—*frankon-) javelin; cf. Saxon (Sahson-), thought to be from *sahso- (OE. seax)
knife. The notion that the ethnic name is derived from the adj. meaning ‘free’ (see frank
a.2) was already current in the 10th century; but the real relation between the words seems
to be the reverse of this.]

A.A n.

1.A.1 A person belonging to the Germanic nation, or coalition of nations, that conquered Gaul in
the 6th century, and from whom the country received the name of France.

   Beowulf 1210 (Gr.) In Francna fæðm.    c 1205 Lay. 3715 Cordoille þe wes Francene quene.
a 1300 Cursor M. 21081 To þe franckis prechid he.    1776 Gibbon Decl. & F. I. x. 259 These
Germans‥maintained the honourable epithet of Franks or Freemen.    1796 H. Hunter tr. St.
Pierre's Stud. Nat. (1799) III. 457 A family of slaves under the Romans risen to Nobility under
the Francs.    1844 Ld. Brougham Brit. Const. iii. (1862) 40 The Franks, who founded the French
Monarchy.

2.A.2 A name given by the nations bordering on the Levant to an individual of Western
nationality. Cf. Feringhee.

   1687 tr. De Thevenot's Trav. ii. i. xi. 51 They presently blazed it abroad that I was a Franck.
a 1734 North Lives II. 456 All European nations that live among them‥are called Franks.    1808
A. Parsons Trav. iii. 62 Foreign merchants called franks.    1886 Pall Mall G. 10 July 4/1 The
Greeks‥calling their Roman brethren ‘unbaptized dogs’ and Franks.

†3.A.3 With ellipsis of ‘language’. A lingua franca or mixed language. Obs.—1

   1681 Nevile Plato Rediv. 13 In Germany or Holland‥most of the Hosts speak a certain
Franck, compounded of Dutch, Latin, and Italian.

†B.B adj. Belonging to, characteristic of, or customary among the Western nations of Europe.
Obs.

   1632 Lithgow Trav. vi. 245 Beating him most cruelly, and all the rest of the Francke Pilgrimes.
1688 Lond. Gaz. No. 2336/5 Two Led Horses, richly furnished, one after the Franke, and the
other after the Turkish Fashion.

gafeluc
bt
gafeluc, es; m. A spear, javelin; hastīle :-- Gafelucas hastīlia, Ælfc. Gl. 52; Som. 66, 54; Wrt. Voc. 35, 41.
[R. Brun. gauelokes javelins : M. H. Ger. gabilōt, gabylōt, n. a javelin : Icel. gaflok, n. spīcūli gĕnus, Rask
Hald : Fr. javelot, m. a javelin : It. giavelotto, m : Wel. gaflach, m. a fork, bearded spear: Ir. gabhla a
spear, lance : Gael. gobhlach forked : Armor. gavlod, m. a javelin.]
bts
gafeluc. Add :-- Gafeluca iaculo, sagitta, Hpt. Gl. 432, 44. Gaflucas catapultas, sagittas, 405, 53.
Gafelucas, arwan catapultas, 505, 56. Hī scuton mid gafelucum ... oð  hē eall wæs beset mid heora
scotungum swilce igles byrsta, Hml. S. 32, 116.

ch
gafeluc m. spear, javelin, OEQ,WW^Æilj. galdre m. wizard, magician.-
['gavf.lock'] galdrigge f. enchantress, GL.

med

oed
gavelock Obs. exc. Hist. and dial.

(ˈgævələk)

Forms: 1 {gafeluc}, gaveluc, 2–4 gaveloc, 4–6 gavelok (gaw-), 5 gavilok, gavylok, 6 gaiflok, 6–7
gavelocke, 9 gav'loc(k), gowelock, dial. geavelock (-lick), 4, 7– gavelock.

[OE. gafeluc str. masc. has the form of a regular dim. of gafel, ᴁeafel fork (see gable n.); the
senses, however, are somewhat difficult to account for on this view of the etymology: evidence is
lacking for the supposition that the word originally meant a forked or barbed arrow (cf. fork n. 9)
and a forked crowbar.
   Words of closely similar form and meaning are ON. gaflak, gaflok neut. javelin (perh. adopted
from Eng.), Welsh gaflach (said to mean ‘bearded arrow’), Irish gabhla lance, ONF. gavelot (12th
c.), gaverlot, gavrelot, garlot (= Central F. javelot, It. giavelotto) javelin, whence MDu. gavelot,
gaverloot, MHG. gabilôt; see also gaff n.1 The relation between the words is uncertain.
Thurneysen, followed by most recent etymologists, regards the Romanic word as of Celtic origin;
the OE. word may possibly be adopted from the OF. (though recorded earlier) or from its source.]

1.1 A spear for throwing; a dart, javelin.

   c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 143/6 Hastilia, gafelucas.    c 1050 in Napier O.E. Glosses
I. 4238 Catapultas, gauelucas.    1183 Jocelin de Brakelonda (Camden) 35 Baculum meum
excussi ad modum teli quod vocatur gaveloc.    a 1259 Matth. Paris an. 1256 (Rolls) V. 550
Frisones igitur‥ipsum Willelmum cum jaculis, quae vulgariter gavelocos appellant, quorum
maxime noticiam habent et usum‥hostiliter insequebantur.    a 1300 E.E. Psalter liv. 22 [lv. 21]
(Horstm.) Nesched als oyle his saghs bene, And þai ere gauelokes [L. jacula] þam bitwene.    c 
1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 297 Þe Waleis partie had vmbilaid þe brigge. With gauelokes and
dartes suilk ore was non sene.    c 1400 Sowdone Bab. 1426 Thai hurte him foule and slough his
hors With gauylokes and wyth dartis.    c 1450 Merlin 300, I saugh hem launche at hym knyves
and gavelokkes and dartes.    a 1650 Merlin 2138 in Furniv. Percy Folio I. 489 [He] bare a
gauelocke in his hand.    1817 J. F. Pennie Royal Minstr. v. 390 Two hundred spearmen, bearing
each His gav'loc crown'd with a stern warrior's head.

†2.2 An artificial spur for a fighting cock. Obs. (Cf. gablock 1, gaff 3 a, gaffle 3, gafflet.)
   1698 Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 175 Cocks as big as Turkies: which they Arm with Razors tied
flat under the Claws, and faulched Two Inches, instead of Gavelocks.

3.3 An iron crowbar or lever. (Cf. gablock 2.)

   1497 in Ld. Treas. Acc. Scotl. (1877) I. 349 Item, giffin for xiij stane of irne, to mak grath to
Mons new cradill, and gavilokkis to ga with hir.    1558 Lanc. Wills III. 80, viij. mylne pycke ij
axes one gavelocke of iron.    c 1632 in Brand Hist. Newcastle (1789) I. 370 note, One iron
gavelock, and one swea tree with two rolles for taking and laying down lairstones.    1681 H.
More Exp. Dan. i. 6 Thou sawest moreover a Stone cut out without hands, no man with Axe or
Gavelock dissevering it.    1804 R. Anderson Cumberld. Ball., Jeff & Job ii, Nin leyke thee cud
fling the geavelick.    1839 Ure Dict. Arts 758 The greater part of the matters contained in the
[lead] furnace is drawn over on the work-stone, by means of a large rake called a gowelock.
1855 Robinson Whitby Gloss., Geavelock, a large iron crowbar for raising stone.    1880
Antiquary Apr. 187 On trying the ground on the north side of the fence with a gavelock, they
came on the cover of a cist.

GĀR
bt
GĀR, es; m. A dart, javelin, spear, shaft, arrow, weapon, arms; jacŭlum, pīlum, hasta, hastæ cuspis,
săgitta, tēlum, arma :-- Se gār the dart, Beo. Th. 3697; B. 1846. Fleāg giellende gār on grome þeōde the
yelling shaft flew on the fierce nation, Exon. 86 b; Th. 326, 13; Wīd. 128. Lǣtaþ gāres ord, in gedūfan in
fǣges ferþ let the javelin-point plunge into the life of the doomed one, Andr. Kmbl. 2662; An. 1332 : Cd.
75; Th. 92, 2; Gen. 1522. Sende se sǣrinc sūþerne gār the sea-chief sent a southern dart, Byrht. Th. 135.
47; By. 134 : 138, 48; By. 237. Gāre wunde wounded by a dart, Beo. Th. 2154; B. 1075 : Exon. 66 a; Th.
243, 28; Jul. 17. Hī gewurdon scearpe gāras ipsi sunt jăcŭla, Ps. Th. 54, 21 : 90, 6. Gāra ordum with
javelin-points, Andr. Kmbl. 64; An. 32 : Cd. 94; Th. 121, 32; Gen. 2019. Hȳ togædre gāras hlǣndon they
had inclined their weapons together, Exon. 66 b; Th. 246, 8; Jul. 63 : Elen. Kmbl. 235; El. 118. Gārum
gehyrsted adorned with javelins, Andr. Kmbl. 90; An. 45 : 2287; An. 1145 : Chr. 937; Erl. 112, 18;
Æðelst. 18. [Chauc. gere, pl : Laym. gar, gare, gære a dart, spear, weapon : Plat. gere a wedge : Kil.
gheer fuscĭna cuspĭdĭbus horrens, quibus pisces căpiuntur : O. Sax. gēr, m : Ger. M. H. Ger. O. H. Ger.
gēr, m. hastīle, jăcŭlum, tēlum : Icel. geirr, m. a spear.] DER. æt-gār, bon-, frum-, hyge-, tite-, wæl-.
@bt_b0362

bts
gār. Add; I. a weapon with a pointed head. (1) where the use is uncertain :-- Gār oft þurhwōd fǣges
feorhhūs, By. 296. Þurh gāres gripe gāst onsendan (cf. gripon under sceāt werum scearpe gāras, Gen.
2064), An. 187. Gāras spicula, i. sagitte, An. Ox. 2098. (2) a weapon that is hurled :-- Gār jaculum, Kent.
Gl. 965. Oft hē gār forlēt, wælspere windan on þā wīcingas, By. 321. (3) a weapon with which a thrust is
made :-- Hē mid gāre stang wlancne wīcing, By. 138. Mē on beāme beornas sticedon gārum, Sat. 511. (4)
either (2) or (3) :-- Darođ sceal on handa, gār golde fāh, Gn. C. 22. Sceal gār wesan monig mundum
bewunden, hæfen on handa, B. 3021. Gāras stōdon ætgædere, æscholt ufan grǣg, B. 328. Gāras līxton, El.
23. (5) an arrow :-- Hyne Hǣđcyn of hornbogan flāne geswencte. . . and his mǣg ofscēt blōdigan gāre, B.
2440. (6) either (2) or (5) :-- Wiđ flyge gāres, Crä. 66: B. 1765. On þæt fǣge folc flāna scūras, gāras. . .
hetend hildenǣdran þurh fingra geweald forđ onsendan, El. 118. II. the head of a weapon :-- Gār sceal on
sceafte, ecg on sweorde and ord spere, Gn. Ex. 203. Feōlhearde speru, gegrundene gāras, By. 109. ¶
phrases :-- Gylpplega gāres battle, Exod. 240. Forđ beran gār tō gūđe, By. 13. Tōgædere gāras beran to
join battle, 67. Cf. gār-berend. III. fig. of sharp pain (from cold). Cf. spere :-- Habbađ heō on ǣfyn fȳr
edneōwe; þonne cymđon ūhtan forst fyrnum cald, symble fȳr ođđe gār, Gen. 316. IV. a wedge-shaped
piece of land. v. gāra :-- Tō đes gōres sūđende, C. D. v. 40, 13. v. nafo-, tōþ-, wīg-gār. Also in proper
names, e. g. Eād-gār.

ch
gār† I. rn. * spear,' dart, javelin, B,PPs.
['gare'] II, tempest? GEH316. III.=gāra
(Mdf).

med

g re (n.(1)) Also gare, gære, gaire.

[OE g r. Forms with æ are prob. due to influence of g re sense 2]

(a) A spear; (b) a dart, javelin; (c) a sword; grimli ~; (d) any weapon.

oed
† gare, n.1 Obs.

Forms: 1 {gár}, 3 gore, 3–4 gare, (3 Lay. gære).

[OE. gár str. masc. = OS., OHG. (MHG.) gêr (mod.Ger. revived in archaistic use as gehr, ger),
ON. geir-r, Goth. *gais (only found in proper names, as Hario-gaisus):—OTeut. *gaizo-z. (The
Goth. gairu σκόλοψ is unconnected.) The word was also in use among the Celtic peoples (hence
OIrish gāi, gae, ga masc., from *gaiso), and was known to the Greeks and Romans (Gr. γαῖσον,
γαῖσος, also Γαισάται Celtic mercenaries armed with this weapon; L. gæsum). To the stem
*ghaiso- belongs also Gr. χαῖος, χαῖον shepherd's staff. The root *ghai- perh. appears also in OE.
gād goad:—*ghai-t‹amacacu›.]

A spear or javelin.

   Beowulf (Z.) 1847 ᴁif þæt ᴁegangeð þæt ðe gar nimeð.    c 1000 Ags. Ps. (Th.) liv. [lv.] 21 Hi
word hira wel ᴁesmyredon‥eft ᴁewurdon‥scearpe garas [L. jacula].    c 1205 Lay. 27549 He
heold on his honde ænne gare [c 1275 one spere] swiðe stronge.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 3458 Dead
ðolen, wið stones slaȝen Or to dead wið goren draȝen [L. confodietur jaculis. Exod. xix. 13].
b.b wrongly used for ‘sword’.

   c 1330 Amis. & Amil. 1353 Thai fight gan, With brondes bright and bare‥The steward smot to
him that stounde‥With his grimly gare.    a 1400 Isumbras 452 He sprange als any sparke one
glede With grymly growndyne gare.

gār-beām
bt
gār-beām, es; m. The wood or handle of a javelin, a spear-shaft; cuspĭdis hasta :-- Gārbeāmes feng a
spear-shaft's grasp, Cd. 155; Th. 193, 14; Exod. 246.

bts

ch
gārbēarn m. spear-shaft, Ex 246.

med

oed
beam, n.1

(biːm)

Forms: 1 {béam}, 2 bæm, beam, 3–4 bem, 4–5 beem, 4–6 beme, (5–6 Sc. beym(e, beim, 5–6
bealme), 6–7 beame, 6– beam.

[Common Teutonic: OE. béam ‘tree,’ ‘plank,’ = OFris. bâm, OS. bâm, bôm, MDu., Du. boom,
OHG., MHG. boum, Ger. baum ‘tree’:—West Ger. *baumo-z. The East Ger. words, Goth. bagm-
s, ON. baðm-r ‘tree,’ though supposed to be identical, present phonetic differences of which no
explanation has been found, and render somewhat doubtful the original Teutonic form of the
word, as also a suggested derivation (which would suit the WGer.) from the vb. root bû-, beu-, =
Gr. ϕυ- (cf. ϕῦµα a growth), Skr. bhu-, bhaw- to grow (cf. be). It remains uncertain whether the
original sense was ‘tree’ as a kind of plant, or ‘tree’ as a wooden stem, stock, or post: OE. had
both meanings, but that of (growing) ‘tree,’ the regular sense in the continental langs., is (exc. in
a few compound names) lost in mod.Eng., where the word has received many transferred
applications, among which that of beam of light, sun-beam, is remarkable.]

I.I A material beam.

* of wood (actually or originally).

†1.I.1 A tree; only in OE., exc. in the now unanalysed compounds, hornbeam, quickbeam,
whitebeam or beam-tree, names of trees.
   826 Chart. Ecgberht in Cod. Dipl. V. 84 Súðæweardæ oð ðet scírhiltæ on ðonæ gréatan béam.
c 1000 Riddles (Grein) lvi. 7 Ic þæs béames mæᴁ éaðe for eorlum æðelu secᴁan.

†2.I.2 The rood-tree or cross. (Cf. ‘hanged on a tree,’ Acts v. 30). beam-light: lighted candles
placed before the rood. fees of the beam: perquisites of the unconsumed remnants of such
candles.

   c 1000 Crist (Grein) 1094 He on ðone hálᴁan béam ahongen wæs.    c 1305 in Leg. Rood
(1871) 146 Cristened we weore in Red rem, Whon his bodi bledde on þe Beem.    1461–83 Ord.
R. Househ. 49 The Deane of the Chapell hathe all the offerings of wax‥with the moderate fees
of the beame‥wher the tapers be consumed into a shaftmennt.    1529 Bk. Founders' Comp. in
N. & Q. Ser. iii. IX. 62 Payd for makyng of viij square taprs for the beme lyght of St. Margt‥vs.
iiijd.    1720 Stow's Surv. (Strype, 1754) I. i. xv. 74/2 The Cross and the Beam beyond the Altar.

3. a.I.3.a A large piece of squared timber, long in proportion to its breadth and thickness, such as
is used in house- or ship-building, where beams form important parts of the structure: originally,
the squared timber of a whole tree, but now used without any such restriction. The ordinary
current sense: for naval use, see II.

   978 O.E. Chron., At Calne‥se halᴁa Dunstan ana ætstod uppon anum beame.    c 1000 Ags.
Gosp. Matt. vii. 3 Þú ne ᴁesyhst þone beam on þinum aᴁenum eaᴁan.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1606
And slep and saȝ, and soðe drem, Fro ðe erðe up til heuene bem A leddre stonden.    1297 R.
Glouc. 288 Þe flor to brac vnder hem‥Seyn Dunston by cas‥hente hym by a bem, and ysaued
was.    c 1340 Cursor M. (Trin.) 8781 Þe beem [Cotton, balk] þat most þe werk shulde bynde.
1413 Lydg. Pylgr. Sowle iv. iii. (1483) 59 A grete tre was hewen doune for to be made a beme.
1595 Shakes. John iv. iii. 129 A rush will be a beame To hang thee on.    1611 Bible 2 Kings vi. 2
Let vs‥take thence euery man a beame, and let vs make vs a place there where we may dwell.
1807 Crabbe Village i. 262 Such is that room which one rude beam divides.

b.I.3.b with special shape or purpose indicated:

   camber-beam: one with its upper surface curving downward on both sides from the middle.
collar-beam: a beam used to join together roof-rafters above the base of the roof, acting either as
a tie or a strut. dragon-beam: a short piece of timber lying diagonally with the wall plates at the
angles of the roof, for receiving the heel of the hip rafter. hammer-beam: a beam acting as a tie,
but not extending across the whole span of the roof. tie-beam: the beam which connects the
bottom of a pair of principal rafters, and prevents them from thrusting out the walls.

   1734 Builder's Dict., Dragon Beams are two strong Braces or Struts‥meeting in an Angle
upon the Shoulder of the Kingpiece.    1823 P. Nicholson Pract. Build. 221 Camber-Beams, those
beams used in the flats of truncated roofs, and raised in the middle with an obtuse angle, for
discharging the rain water towards both sides of the roof.    Ibid. 222 Dragon-beam, the piece of
timber which supports the hip-rafter, and bisects the angle formed by the wall plates.    1845
Gloss. Gothic Archit. I. 317 In the Perpendicular style hammer-beam roofs were introduced.
Ibid. The roof‥of Malvern priory had a variety of cross-braces above the tie-beams cut into
ornamental featherings.
c.I.3.c fig., esp. with allusion to the figure of the mote and the beam (Matt. vii. 3).

   [Cf. c 1000 in 3.]    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. x. 264 Sithen a beem in þine owne ablyndeth þi-selue.
a 1555 Latimer Serm. & Rem. (1845) 314 Learn from your own beams to make allowance for
your neighbour's motes.    1588 Shakes. L.L.L. iv. iii. 162 You found his Moth, the King your
Moth did see: But I a Beame doe finde in each of three.    1649 Drummond of Hawthornden Hist.
Jas. IV, Wks. (1711) 74 Her tears and prayers shook the strongest beams of his resolutions.

4.I.4 The wooden roller or cylinder in a loom, on which the warp is wound before weaving; also
called fore-beam, yarn-beam, yarn-roll beam. The similar roller on which the cloth is wound as it
is woven; also called back-beam, breast-beam, cloth-beam.

   c 1000 Supp. Ælfric's Gloss. in Wülcker Voc. /187 Liciatorium, webbeam.    1382 Wyclif 1
Sam. xvii. 7 The shaft of his speer was as the beem [Coverdale, lome] of websters.    c 1440
Promp. Parv. 30/2 Beeme of webstarrys lome, liciatorium.    1552 Huloet, Beame of timber
wherupon embroderers‥do rolle their worke, iugum.    1598 Shakes. Merry W. v. i. 23, I feare
not Goliah with a Weauers beame.    1675 Hobbes Odyss. (1677) 230 So I A beam set up, and
then began to weave.    1831 G. Porter Silk Manuf. 215 The beam, or yarn-roll, on which the
threads are wound.

5.I.5 The great timber of the plough, to which all the other parts of the plough-tail are fixed.

   c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wülcker Voc. /104 Buris, sulh-beam.    c 1450 in Ibid. /569 Burris, the
plowebeme.    1483 Cath. Angl. 27/1 A beym of ye plwgh, buris.    1592 Warner Alb. Eng. viii.
xlii. (1597) 205 But to the Headland shall our Plough, vnles we breake our Beame.    1787 T.
Jefferson Corr. (1830) 135 The plough here is made with‥a beam twelve feet long.    1832 C.
Howard Sel. Farms (L.U.K.) 3 The plough is of a light construction‥the length of the beam is
six feet six inches.

6. a.I.6.a The transverse bar from the ends of which the scales of a balance are suspended; the
balance itself. Often fig. with reference to the scales held by the allegorical figure of justice.

   1420 E.E. Wills (1882) 46 A beme þat y weye þer-with.    1503 Act 19 Hen. VII, vi, Deceivable
and untrue Beams and Scales.    1581 Lambarde Eiren. iv. xix. (1588) 605 Let us holde the
beame, and put in balaunce their reasons on either side.    1711 Pope Rape Lock v. 73 The
doubtful beam long nods from side to side.    1802 Rees Cycl. s.v. Balance, The beam, the
principal part of the balance, is a lever of the first kind.    1875 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 9) s.v. Balance,
The beam‥is supported on a polished horizontal frame of agate or hard steel.

b.I.6.b Phrases, the common beam, the King's beam (Hist.); the public standard balance formerly
in the custody of the Grocers' Company of London; fig. an authorized standard. to kick or strike
the beam: (of one scale of a balance) to be so lightly loaded that it flies up and strikes the beam;
to be greatly outweighed; often fig.

   [1386 Records Grocers' Co. Lond. (facsimile 67), Item paie a Johan Reche pour defendre le
pursute dell Bem.]    1448 MS. Records do. 147 Weying the same marchaundise at ther owne
beeme, and not at the commorn beeme.    1494 Fabyan vii. 341 Than was layde vnto theyr
charge, that‥they hadde alteryd the kynges beame.    Ibid. 391 The kynges bealme.    1607
Hieron Wks. I. 79 To make the written word (as it were) the standard or the kings beame, by
which to try all doctrine.    1647 Ward Simp. Cobler 38 A sin‥that seemes small in the common
beame of the world, may be very great in the scoales of his Sanctuary.    1712 Addison Spect. No.
463 ⁋3 The latter, to shew its comparative Lightness, immediately flew up and kickt the Beam.
1860 G. P. Morris Poems (ed. 15) 53 Wealth!—a straw within the balance, Opposed to love will
strike the beam.

†7.I.7 The pole or shaft of a chariot. Obs.

   1600 Chapman Iliad v. 736 The chariot's‥beam that look'd before Was massy silver.    1697
Dryden Virg. Æneid xii. (J.) Juturna‥Forc'd from the beam her brother's charioteer.

8.I.8 Tanning. A block of varying shape upon which hides are fixed to be scraped or shaved.

   1875 Ure Dict. Arts III. 93 The furniture in this department consists of a beam on which the
leather is shaved, etc.

** of other materials.

†9.I.9 A large bar of metal; a piece of metal fulfilling the functions of sense 3. Obs.

   c 885 K. Ælfred Oros. ii. viii. §5 Hiora ærenan beamas‥ne mehton from Galliscum fyre
forbærnede weorþan.    1387 Trevisa Higden Rolls Ser. V. 315 Hormisda lefte in Seynt Peter his
chirche a beme [trabem] of silver.    1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. (1841) iv. lxxix. §5 A certain beam
of gold about seven hundred and a half in weight.    1613 Purchas Pilgr. II. vii. 132 A greate
beame of gold.

10.I.10 The shank or main part of an anchor (Phillips 1706, Johnson, etc.); but according to
Admiral Smyth, the stock.

11.I.11 In the steam-engine, etc.: A heavy iron lever, having a reciprocating motion on a central
axis, one end of which is connected with the piston-rod from which it receives motion, and the
other with the crank or wheel-shaft, to which it communicates motion; also called working-beam
and walking-beam.

   1758 Fitzgerald in Phil. Trans. L. 727 [In] the fire-engine‥it was necessary to contrive some
way to make the beam, tho' moving alternately, to turn a wheel constantly round one way.    1851
Carlyle Sterling iii. ii. (1872) 175, I saw half the beam of a great steam-engine‥cast in about
five minutes.    1884 Harper's Mag. July 270/1 The walking-beam which drives the side-wheels.

12.I.12 The main trunk of a stag's horn which bears the branches or ‘antlers.’

   1575 Turberv. Venerie 53 When the beame is great, burnished‥and not made crooked by the
antlyers.    1630 J. Taylor (Water P.) Wks. i. 93/1 A Buckes hornes are composed of Burre,
Beame, etc.    1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. I. ii. v. (1862) 325 The fourth year that part [of the horn]
which bears the antlers is called the beam.    1862 C. Collyns Red Deer ii, The ‘beam,’ or main
horn, increases in size‥as the stag grows older.

†13.I.13 The part of a cock's leg below the thigh and above the spur. Obs.

   1614 Markham Cheap Husb. (1623) 135 His legs straight, and of a strong beame.    [So 1727 in
Bradley Fam. Dict. s.v. Cock.]

II.II Nautical extensions of senses 1, 3.

†14.II.14 poet. A ship, a bark: perhaps, originally one made of a hollowed trunk. Obs.

   c 1000 Riddles (Grein) xi. 7 Ic of fæðmum cwóm brimes and béames.    1509 Barclay Ship of
Fools (1570) 178 Howe thou thee aventrest in holowe beame To passe the sea.

15.II.15 One of the horizontal transverse timbers, stretching from side to side of a ship,
supporting the deck, and holding the vessel together. on the beams: cf. on the beam-ends (sense
18).

   1627 Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. ii. 5 The maine beame is euer next the maine mast, where is
the ships greatest breadth.    1784 Cook Voy. (1790) III. 809 Before we could raise the main tack,
the Dolphin was laid upon her beams.    1795 Nelson in Nicolas Disp. II. 5 The ships built at
Toulon have their sides, beams, decks‥from this Island.    1873 Act 36 & 37 Vict. lxxxv. §3 The
number denoting her registered tonnage shall be cut in on her main beam.

16. a.II.16.a Hence, The greatest breadth of a ship.

   1627 Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. iii. 15 Suppose a Ship of 300. Tunnes be 29 foot at the
Beame.    1781 Nelson in Nicolas Disp. I. 43 The Albemarle is not so wide on the gun-deck by
four inches, but the same beam.    1875 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit. Sports ii. viii. i. §3 The shallow hull
gave way‥to sharp bottoms, less beam, and a great deal of lead.

b.II.16.b transf. The (width of the) hips or buttocks; esp. in colloq. phr. broad in the beam.

   1929 H. Walpole Hans Frost ii. vi. 177 He stood watching disgustedly Bigges' broad beam.
1944 S. E. Hicks Beach Annabel & M. Verena xxiv. 92 A cast-off of Jim's. He's grown too broad
in the beam for it.    1960 I. Cross Backward Sex i. 24 ‘I'm too broad around the beam.’ ‘What do
you mean?‥’ ‘My hips, silly‥I've got wide hips.’

17.II.17 Hence designating the side of a vessel or sideward direction, esp. in technical phrases.
lee beam or weather beam: the side away from or towards the wind. on or upon the (starboard or
larboard) beam: at some distance on the (right or left) side of a ship, at right angles to the keel.
abaft or before the beam: behind or before an imaginary line drawn right across the centre of the
ship. beam sea: one rolling against the ship's side.

   1628 Digby Jrnl. 83 You gett your chace vpon your beame.    1791 Smeaton Edystone L. §159
The wind‥was but one point before our beam.    1833 Marryat P. Simple (1863) 101 Land on
the lee beam!    1836 ― Midsh. Easy xxx, The other frigate had passed half her length clear of
the beam of the Aurora.    1883 Froude Sketches 67 The wind rose‥bringing‥a heavy beam
sea.

18.II.18 beam-ends, the ends of a ship's beams. to be, or be laid, on the beam-ends: to have them
touching the water, so that the vessel lies on its side in imminent danger of capsizing; fig. to be
quite laid aside, utterly at a loss, hard up.

   1773 Gentl. Mag. XLIII. 321 The gust laid her upon her beam-ends.    1796 Morse Amer.
Geog. I. 517 A number of large river craft‥on their beam-ends for want of water.    1830
Marryat King's Own xxvi, Our first-lieutenant was‥on his beam-ends, with the rheumatiz.
1844 Dickens Mart. Chuz. xl. (D.) Tom was thrown upon his beam-ends again for some other
solution.

III.III An immaterial beam, of light, colour, etc.

19. a.III.19.a A ray, or ‘bundle’ of parallel rays, of light emitted from the sun or other luminous
body; out-streaming radiance. [Apparently this sense arose in OE. through literal translation from
the Lat.; not, however, as often thought, of radius solis ‘a spoke’ of the sun, but of columna lucis
a ‘pillar’ or ‘column’ of light; an expression used more than once by Bæda (e.g. H.E. III. xi) to
denote a column or stream of light rising from a saint's dead body, which Ælfred renders by
swylce sunne-béam. Also, in the poetical version of Exodus, the pillars or columns of fire and
cloud, are béamas twéᴁen; the fiery pillar is wuldres béam, column or beam of glory, byrnende
béam, and in the metrical Psalms, fýren béam a fire beam. We may compare the beam- or balk-
like appearance of the illuminated dusty atmosphere of a room, and the representations of light
from heaven in paintings.]

   c 885 in O.E. Chron. an. 678 Her ateowede cometa‥and scan iii monðas ælce morᴁen swilce
sunne beam [Bæda, excelsam radiantis flammæ quasi columnam.]    c 1000 Ags. Ps. cv. 34 Het
him neode, nihta ᴁehwylce, fyrenne beam beforan wisian.    1205 Lay. 17887 Þe leome þa strehte
west riht a seouen bæmen [1250 bemes] wes idiht.    c 1325 E.E. Allit. P. B. 603 Bryȝt blykked þe
bem of þe brode heuen.    1375 Barbour Bruce xi. 190 Armys‥blenknyt with the sonnys beyme.
c 1430 Hymns Virg. 208 Þe briȝt beemys blent my siȝt.    1596 Shakes. Merch. V. v. i. 90 How
farre that little candell throwes his beames.    1664 Power Exp. Philos. i. 77 So were the
Luminous Beams variously transmitted, refracted, or reflected.    1869 Tyndall in Fortn. Rev. 228
But what, in the first instance, is a beam of light? It is a train of innumerable waves, excited in,
and propagated through, an almost infinitely attenuated and elastic medium, which fills all space,
and which we name the æther.

b.III.19.b The appearance of rays produced by the sun's shining upon mist through gaps in the
clouds.

   1846 Ruskin Mod. Paint. (1851) I. ii. 3 i. §15. 209 The appearance of beams can only take
place in a part of the sky which has clouds between it and the sun.

c.III.19.c A radiating line of colour.

   1705 Petiver in Phil. Trans. XXV. 1953 The other [shells] have red beams, which shoot from
the hinge, and are broader at the edges.

d.III.19.d A directed flow of radiation or particles; freq. attrib.

   1906 Rutherford in Phil. Mag. XI. 168 Radium served as a source of α rays. A narrow beam of
rays, after passing through a parallel slit, fell on a photographic plate.    1908 H. Geiger in Proc.
R. Soc. A. LXXXI. 174 Scattering is well known in the case of β-particles. A narrow pencil of β-
rays emerges after passing through a metal plate as an ill-defined beam.    1933 Discovery Aug.
236/2 The new research will be termed ‘beam’ therapy and will be carried on at the London
Radium Institute in Portland Place.    1937 Ibid. Nov. 329/2 The mechanical difficulties are
obviated by using a beam of electrons for scanning.    1938 R. W. Lawson tr. Hevesy & Paneth's
Man. Radioactivity (ed. 2) xxvi. 288 Cockcroft and Walton succeeded in 1932 in the
transmutation of light elements, by bombarding them with a beam of fast protons.    Ibid. 291 The
focusing action results in the generation of beams of ions.    1959 Times 19 Jan. 8/2 A brain
operation in which for the first time a beam of protons was used instead of surgical instruments
has been performed at the Werner Institute for Nuclear Chemistry at Uppsala.

20.III.20 transf. A similar ray of heat.

   1860 Tyndall Glac. ii. §3. 244 Two beams of heat, from two distinct sources.    1882 Longm.
Mag. 38 In passing through the liquid layer, a beam of heat encounters the same number of
molecules as in passing through the vapour layer.

21.III.21 fig. Ray, gleam, emanation: †eye-beam, beam of sight, a glance.

   1579 Gosson Sch. Abuse (Arb.) 33 Basiliskes‥poyson as well with the beame of their sighte
as with the breath of their mouth.    1587 Marlowe Dido iii. i. 708 Lest their gross eye-beams
taint my lovers cheeks.    1674 Owen Holy Spirit (1693) 235 A Beam of Truth from the Light of
Nature.    1742 Collins Epist. 56 Bring No beam of comfort to the guilty king.    1818 Byron Juan
i. lxi, Her cheek all purple with the beam of youth.

†22.III.22 Math. The radius of a circle, an axial line. (Translating L. radius, apparently from the
association of beam and ray of light.) Obs.

   1570 Dee Math. Præf. 19 Beames, or naturall lines.    1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie ii. (1811) 81
The beame is a line stretching directly from the circle to the center.    1624 Wotton Archit. in
Reliq. Wotton. (1672) 52 The Axel-tree, or middle Beam of the Eye.

†23.III.23 Arch. (See quot.) Obs.

   1664 Evelyn tr. Freart's Archit. 130 Raies or Beames, which‥are those plain spaces between
the Flutings.

24. a.III.24.a Radio Communication. In full radio beam, wireless beam: radio waves transmitted
as a beam, i.e. undispersed, from a special aerial system, part of which acts as a reflector; usu.
attrib.
   [1899 Marconi in Jrnl. Inst. Electrical Engin. XXVIII. 274 Should it be necessary to direct a
beam of rays in one given direction I prefer to use an arrangement similar to a Righi oscillator
placed in the focal line of a suitable cylindrical parabolic reflector.]    1924 Marconi 2 July in
Jrnl. R. Soc. Arts 25 July 607/2 The transmission and reception of intelligible signals over a
distance of 13/4 miles of a beam system employing short waves and reflectors.    1924 Westm.
Gaz. 24 July, Arrangements had been made for the erection of a beam station in Canada.    1924
Daily News 14 Nov. 7/4 Beam wireless.    1925 Telegr. & Teleph. Jrnl. Mar. 107/1 Australian
papers give the following‥information regarding the ‘Beam’ Radio Stations.    1927 Daily Mail
2 Dec. 11/1 Cable Companies and The Beam.    1928 Morning Post 23 Mar. 14 Beam-cable
fusion [of the Eastern Exchange Cable Company and Marconi Company].‥ The beam system of
telegraphy.    1934 Nature 24 Feb. 297/2 One advantage of short-wave transmission in radio
communication is that it is possible to concentrate the radiation‥in one direction, thus forming a
beam of waves.‥ A series of vertical aerials‥(called a beam array) will act like Hertz's
reflector.    1946 Proc. Inst. Radio Engineers XXXIV. 335 (title) A Current Distribution for
Broadside Arrays which Optimizes the Relationship between Beam Width and Side-Lobe Level.
1958 Engineering 31 Jan. 157/3 The aerial has been designed to give a sharp beamwidth at high
signal strength. At 20 db the horizontal beamwidth extends about 0·65 deg.

b.III.24.b Aeronaut. A directional radio transmission used to guide aircraft or missiles; freq.
attrib., as beam approach.

   1927 Sci. Amer. Jan. 32 Radio along the Airways. Invisible beams guide birdmen in flights
between European cities.    1929 Aviation 28 Dec. 1277/1 A landing beam transmitter buried
flush with the ground in the center of the field.    Ibid., After finding the beam the pilot glides
down it toward the field.    1933 K. Henney Radio Engin. Handbk. 537 The diminution of
intensity as the airplane drops below the inclined axis is compensated by the increase of intensity
due to approaching the beam transmitter.    1941 Tee Emm Oct. 8/1 The policy is that Beam
Approach training shall be introduced‥as equipment becomes available.    1949 A. R. Weyl
Guided Missiles i. 26 The ‘beam-rider’ system in which the missile flies along a radar beam.
1958 Times 9 Oct. 10/2 It carries a warhead with proximity fuse and a beam guidance system.
1963 Oxf. Mag. 9 May 280/2 The Germans with their beam flying provided us with targets that
would have been peculiarly favourable to aerial mine defence.

c.III.24.c to be on the beam, to be on the course indicated by a radio beam; hence fig. (colloq.) to
be on the right track, right, sane. So to be off the beam.

   1941 Amer. Speech XVI. 238/2 Expressions disparaging a person's mental state‥off his beam
(airplane).    1941 Daring Detective Nov. 7/2 ‘Now we know we're on the beam,’ said Brubach.
‘Sex maniacs and drinking companions are definitely eliminated.’    1943 Hunt & Pringle Service
Slang 49 On the beam, I follow what you are saying. (R.A.F.).    1948 Observer 18 Jan. 2/3 Hugh
Burden, as Barnaby, was right on the beam from the start.    1949 Jrnl. Brit. Interplanet. Soc.
VIII. 143 Thus rocket aeroplanes might seem ‘off the beam’ of true astronautics.    1954 ‘N.
Blake’ Whisper in Gloom i. iv. 58 Never heard of him. You're off the beam.

IV.IV Comb., as beam-house, beam-knife, beam-man (sense 8); beam-engine, beam-gudgeon

(sense 11); beam-antler (12); beam-knee, beam-plate (15); also beam-action, the action of a
beam-engine; beam aerial, antenna, a directional aerial for transmitting a radio beam; beam-arm,
a crooked timber extending from the side of a beam to the ship's side, in the wake of the
hatchway (Adm. Smyth); beam-bird, dial. name of the Spotted Flycatcher; beam-blind a.,
uncritical of oneself (cf. sense 3 c); so beam-blindness; beam-board, the platform of a steelyard or
balance; beam-centre, the central pin on which the beam of a steam-engine works; beam-
compass, an instrument consisting of a wooden or brass beam with sliding sockets, for drawing
larger circles than an ordinary pair of compasses can describe; beam-ends (see 18); beam-engine,
a steam engine having a vibrating beam through which the piston effort is transmitted to the
crank; beam-feather (see quot.); beam-fish, ? a shark (see quot.); beam-like a., like a beam, of
timber or of light; beam-line, the line which shows the junction of the upper sides of the
successive beams with the ship's sides; beam-splitter Photogr., a device consisting of a prismatic
arrangement of mirrors (see quots.); so beam-splitting adj.; beam-trawl v., to fish with a trawl-net
of which the mouth is kept open by a beam.

   1896 Daily News 7 Jan. 6/5 The‥*beam-action locomotives of that extremely primitive line.

   1926 Gloss. Terms Electr. Engin. (B.S.I.) *Beam Aerial System, a combination of aerials with
their earthing, tuning and reflecting arrangements so disposed as to concentrate the available
radiated energy into a beam.    1945 Electronic Engin. XVII. 719 Indicating the target by means
of a rotating beam aerial.

   1935 K. Henney Radio Engin. Handbk. (ed. 2) 774 The elements of the Walmsley *beam
antenna.

   1623 Cockeram s.v. Pollard, *Beame antler is the next start growing above the Brow antler.

   c 1850 Rudim. Nav. (Weale) 95 *Beam-Arm, or Fork-Beam, a forked piece of timber, nearly of
the depth of the beam, scarphed, tabled, and bolted, for additional security to the sides of beams
athwart large openings in the decks, as the main hatchway and the mast-rooms.

   1766 Pennant Zool. (1768) II. 263 Known in that county [York] by the name of the *beam-bird,
because it nestles under the ends of beams in outbuildings, &c.

   1879 G. M. Hopkins Poems (1918) 47 What hinders? Are you *beam-blind, yet to a fault In a
neighbour deft-handed.    1932 S. C. Carpenter Supernat. Relig. iv. 94 The difference between his
[sc. our Lord's] moteless eye and the beam-blindness of the Pharisees.

   1785 Roy in Phil. Trans. LXXV. 402 A *beam-compass, sufficient to take in twenty feet.

   1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm II. 312 The *beam-engine of 6-horse power.    a 1877 Knight Dict.
Mech. 257/1 Beam-engine‥, an engine with an oscillating beam, to whose respective ends the
connecting-rod from the piston and the pitman from the crank are attached.

   1486 Bk. St. Albans A. viij b, And oon principall feder of thes same is in the myddis‥that is
called the *Beme feder of the tayle.
   1721 Bailey, *Beam-feathers [among falconers], the long feathers of a Hawk's Wing [in mod.
dicts.].

   1742 Bailey, *Beam-fish, a sea monster like a pike, a dreadful enemy to mankind, seizing like a
blood-hound, and never letting go, if he gets fast hold.

   1885 Harper's Mag. Jan. 274/2 The‥tip-cart‥makes its appearance‥ready to take a load to
the *beam-house.

   1869 E. J. Reed Shipbuild. viii. 145 And the *Beam-knee ends are welded on to the central
piece.

   1620 Quarles Jonah (1638) 27 The great Leviathan set ope His *beame-like Jawes.    1820
Shelley Sens. Plant 11, The bee and the beamlike ephemeris.

   1884 West. Morn. News 3 Sept. 2/1 To Tanners.—Wanted, young man as *Beamman.

   1614 Chapman Odyss. i. 675 And hung them on a *beam-pin near the bed.

   1935 Discovery July 189/1 Iceland spar‥*beam splitter‥entirely free from parallax. This
system may be employed‥to obtain three-colour negatives.    1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict.
83/1 Beam-splitter or beam-splitting camera, a camera for colour photography, in which the beam
of light from the object is separated into three components by means of a complicated prism.
1956 A. L. M. Sowerby Dict. Photogr. (ed. 18) 52 Beamsplitter, a combination of four mirrors‥
used either for taking a stereoscopic pair of pictures with an ordinary single-lens camera, or for
projecting or viewing a stereo pair so made.    1958 M. L. Hall et al. Newnes Complete Amat.
Photogr. xxvi. 235 Stereos taken on the same frame by a beam-splitting device.

   1658 Ussher Ann. vi. 360 The planet of Mercurie‥was seen, near to the *beam star in the
signe of Libre.

   1883 Fisheries Exhib. Catal. 3 The rapid growth of *beam-trawling.

gār-wudu
bt
gār-wudu; gen. -wuda; m. Spear-wood, a javelin; hastæ lignum, hasta :-- Hie to gūþe gārwudu rǣrdon
they raised the spear-wood to battle, Cd. 160; Th. 198, 20; Exod. 325.

bts

ch
gārwudu m. spear-shaft, lance, Ex 325.
med

3.

(a) The hard, fibrous substance comprising most of the trunk and branches of a living tree
beneath the bark, taken collectively; wood as the material forming the substance of a living tree;
also in fig. context; also, the analogous fleshy substance comprising the stalk of a leek; ful of ~,
woody, full of branches; of a bough: ?leafy, full of foliage; light ~, live twigs or shoots; thorn ~,
the thorny parts of a rosebush;

(b) the woody substance or parts of a living tree, regarded as raw material for building or other
purposes, wood as a commodity or forest product; also, live trees regarded as a harvestable
resource, standing timber; also, cut or fallen logs, branches, etc.; chater ~, q.v.; hegge ~, a piece
of wood used in constructing a hedge; keie ~, wood unloaded or sold at a wharf; parcel (shaue)
of ~, a stand of timber; polle ~, q.v.; reste (wind-fallen, wind-felled) ~; smal ~, cut branches or
brushwood; under ~, q.v.;

(c) the woody parts of a tree broken or cut up specif. for use as fuel, firewood; also fig.; also in
proverbs; drie ~, seasoned firewood; ascel ~, brenning ~, q.v.; elinge (feuel fir) ~; grene ~,
unseasoned firewood; gret ~, large fire logs; ol ~, q.v.;

(d) wood that has been cut, seasoned, and shaped specif. for use as building material, lumber; a
beam, board, plank; also, cut and seasoned wood as the material from which objects may be
fashioned; also in fig. context; also, a wooden object; ~ cedre bemes, timbers or beams of cedar;
~ of idoles (maumetrie), maumet ~, Bibl. a wooden cult object, perh. a talismanic pole, used in
pagan worship [cp. sense 2.(c) above]; astel ~, ?wooden poles or spits; ?billets of wood; cedre ~,
a piece of cedar wood; reste ~, ?wood for making reests;

oed
4.I.4 transf. and fig. A collection or crowd of spears or the like (suggesting the trees of a wood);
gen. a collection, crowd, ‘lot’, ‘forest’. (After L. silva.) Now rare or Obs.

   1584 Hudson Du Bartas' Judith v. 500 Though my buckler bore a wood of darts.    1610 B.
Jonson Alch. iii. ii, The whole family, or wood of you.    [1664 H. More Myst. Iniq. 331, I
might‥observe what is answerable in the Church of Rome to the Vinalia, Robigalia, Terminalia,
Parentalia, Proserpinalia, and other Feasts of the Gentiles; but this wood is so wide, that I may
easilier lose my self in it then get through it.]    1670 G. H. tr. Hist. Cardinals iii. iii. 328 Cardinal
Savelli‥having discover'd his natural infirmities‥, the whole Wood of his other good qualities
were not sufficient to ballance them.    1670 Dryden 1st Pt. Conq. Granada ii. (1672) 14 A wood
of Launces.    a 1674 Milton Hist. Mosc. Pref., Wks. 1851 VIII. 469 In such a wood of words.
1704 Norris Ideal World ii. ii. 79 What a wood of difficulties and objections this side of the
question is incompassed with.    1798 W. Sotheby tr. Wieland's Oberon (1826) I. 2 A wood of
threat'ning lances.
gūþ-wudu
bt
gār-wudu; gen. -wuda; m. Spear-wood, a javelin; hastæ lignum, hasta :-- Hie to gūþe gārwudu rǣrdon
they raised the spear-wood to battle, Cd. 160; Th. 198, 20; Exod. 325.

bts

ch
gūtSwudu m. spear, FIN 6.

med

oed
† {guth}-strength Obs. rare—1.

[f. OE. gúð = ON. guð-r, gunn-r war.]

? Warlike strength.

   c 1205 Lay. 1595 Corineus him geinde to mid his guð strencðe.

here-sceaft
bt
here-sceaft, es; m. A war-shaft, spear, Beo. Th. 675; B. 335.

bts

ch
heresceaft m. spear, B335.

med
(a) The shaft of a spear; spere ~; honde ~, a piece of wood resembling such a shaft for use in
learning how to throw a spear; (b) a spear, lance; also, ?a splinter [quot.: ?a1450]; (c) the shaft of
an arrow; also, an arrow; (d) ~ man, a soldier armed with a lance, spear, dart, or an arrow, etc.;
(e) the handle of an axe; also, ?a plow beam [1st quot.]; shovele ~, the shaft or handle of a
shovel; (f) pike ~, a linear unit of land measure.

oed
shaft, n.2
(ʃɑːft, -æ-)

Forms: 1 sceft, 1–3 {sceaft}, scæft, 3 scaft, saft, 3–4 ssafte, scheft, 4 shafth, 4–5 schafft, schafte,
4–7 schaft, shafte, 5 chaft(e, 4– shaft; rare 4 schaf, 4–5 shaffe, 4, 7 shaff, 7 shafe.

[Com. Teut. (wanting in Gothic): OE. sceaft masc. = OFris. skeft (Hettema), OS. skaft masc.
(MLG., MDu., Du. schaft, schacht fem.), OHG. scaft masc., pl. scefti (MHG., mod.G. schaft
masc.), ON. skapt neut. (Sw., Da. skaft):—OTeut. *skafto-, *skafti-z:—preTeut. *skapto-, -ti-s.
   App. cogn. w. L. scāpus shaft, stem, shank; somewhat more doubtfully with Gr. (Dor.) σκᾶπτον
staff (Ion., Att. σκηπτο- in σκηπτοῦχος staff-bearer, σκῆπτρον staff, sceptre, σκήπτειν to prop.).
The Teut. word might, with regard both to form and meaning, be plausibly explained as a passive
ppl. derivative from the root of shave v.; but it is doubtful whether the supposed cognates can be
similarly accounted for.]

1. a.1.a The long slender rod forming the body of a lance or spear, or of an arrow. Also of a
staff, harpoon, etc.

   c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 143/7 Contus, spereleas sceaft.    1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls)
8658 He sset þe kyng [William Rufus] in atte breste þat neuereft he ne speke Bote þe ssafte þat
was wyþoute grisliche he to brek.    1382 Wyclif 1 Sam. xx. 5 The brother of Goliath Jethee,
whos spere schaft was as the beme of websters.    c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 504 (Morris), His
sleep, his mete, his drynk is him byraft, That lene he wexe, and drye as eny schaft.    1506 Acc.
Ld. High Treas. Scot. III. 358 Item, for xij staf schaftis‥xxiiij s.    1533 Ibid. VI. 188 For v
dosane shaftis to Jedburcht stavis coft to his grace.    1688 Holme Armoury iii. xvii. (Roxb.)
113/1 Parts of a Pike. The shaft, for military service is reputed 16 or 18 foot long or there about.
1801 T. Roberts Engl. Bowman 293 Shaft, an arrow: properly so called when it wants only the
head.    1814 Scott Ld. of Isles vi. xvi, His broken weapon's shaft survey'd The King, and careless
answer made.    1836 Landor Pericles & Aspasia Wks. 1846 II. 419, I can compare the
Lacedemonians to nothing more fitly than to the heads of spears without the shafts.    1907 C.
Hill-Tout Brit. N. Amer., Far West vii. 132 Points being held to the haft of the harpoon by long
plaited lines. When the fish is struck these points detach themselves from the shaft.

b.1.b A spear or lance. Now arch.

   c 1000 Ælfric Lives Saints xii. 53 His sceaft ætstod ætforan him‥swa þæt þæt spere him eode
þurh ut.    c 1205 Lay. 23907 Þe an an his ænde‥and þæ oðer an his ænde‥heo quehten heore
scaftes [c 1275 saftes].    13‥ Guy Warw. 1404 So miȝti strokes þer wer ȝiuen, Þat strong
schaftes al to-driuen.    c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 1594 So harde þay acoupede on hur scheldes þat
broke buþ boþe hure schafte, & þe peces fulle on þe feldes þe hedes on þe tre by-lafte.    c 1430
Chev. Assigne 301 And whenne þat shafte is schyuered take scharpelye another.    1483 Cath.
Angl. 57/2 A Chafte; vbi spere, &c.    1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. ii. 627 War from stubborn
Myrtle Shafts receives: From Cornels Jav'lins; and the tougher Yeugh Receives the bending
Figure of a Bow.    1754 Gray Poesy 53 Hyperion's march they spy, and glitt'ring shafts of war.
1847 Tennyson Princess v. 492 All the plain,—brand, mace, and shaft, and shield—Shock'd.
hilde-pīl
bt
hilde-pīl, es; m. A dart, bolt, javelin, Exon. 105 a; Th. 399, 5; Rä. 18, 6: 104 b; Th. 397, 33; Rä. 16, 28.

bts

ch
hildepil† m. dart, javelin.

med

p l(e (n.(3)) Also (in names) pila, pille, peile, pul(l)e.

[OE p l & ON (cp. OI pila); from L p lum.]

1.

(a) A pointed missile of some kind; an arrow or a dart; (b) the heavy javelin of the Roman
infantry; (c) a sharp-pointed surgical cutting instrument, a lancet.

(a)    (1189-90) Pipe R.Rich.I   3:  Et pro quarrellis de arbelester et pilez.

c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)   3490:  To-gider we go now..Smiteþ wiþ swerdes & speres y-

grounde, Scheteþ wiþ piles [F pels] & 3if hem deþ wounde.
c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)   3607:  Sum piles [F piz] scharpe kerueinde, Al aboute so mani
stondinde þat ich ne can þe noumbre telle..þer nae man þat þer neye come, þat he ne was to-
corwen anon.
c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   6976:  Þen Paris..with a pile sharp Rut hym in thurgh þe
rybbis with a roid wond.
a1500(a1450) Ashmole SSecr.(Ashm 396)   88/13:  Make stronge shot, and cast in piles
[Lambeth: dartys; L pila] venymed as gonne stones.

(b)    a1450(1408) *Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)   38b:  Also þei hadde double dartes..Þe more had an
heued of yren þre square, þe wei3te of ix ounces and þe schaft of fyue foot & half, þe whiche
now is cleped a pyle [L pilum]..þe whiche schot..my3tiliche y-þrowe, it persed schelde and
habergeoun.

(c)    ?a1425 *Chauliac(1) (NY 12)   157b/a:  Be þer made in þe space comprehended many
scarificacionz ordinately after þe skyn depe wiþ a pile, i. here or rasour [L pilo aut rasorio].

2.
(a) A quill of a hedgehog; a prickle of a plant; (b) coll. the spiked lower ends of the bars of a
portcullis; (c) the gnomon of a sundial.

(a)    c1225 Body & S.(2) (Wor F.174)   8/21:  Alle [sins] weren prikiende so piles on ile.

c1300 SLeg.Edm.King (LdMisc 108)   49:  Ase ful ase is an Irchepil, of piles [Hrl: pikes] al-a-
boute, So ful he stikede of Arewene.
?a1450 Agnus Castus (Stockh 10.90)   172/24:  Lactuca..ha3t lewys lyk endywe, but þis herbe
ha3t nonne piles [vrr. pykkes, pykys] in þe rygges as endywe ha3t.

(b)    ?a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.(1) (LdMisc 656)   616:  Ledes..portecolis with pile picchen to

grounde.

(c)    c1225(OE) Wor.Aelfric Gloss.(Wor F.174)   552/22:  Goomon [read: gnomon]:

[dæimæ]les pil.

3.

(a) A pile; a timber, pole, or stake driven into a riverbed, the ground, etc., to help form an
obstruction, a piling of a bridge, a foundation, etc.; a prop for a tree; piles and pales, the palisade
of a camp; ~ sho, a metal casing for the end of a pile; (b) a stake fixed in the ground at which
soldiers practised fencing strokes, hurled the javelin, and shot arrows; (c) a post.

(a)    (1392) in Rec.B.Nottingham 1   416:  Ricardus Byron..obstupavit rectum cursum aquae de

Trent..ponens in aquam praedictam pilos de maeremio..et sic per..positionem dictorum
piles..rectus cursus aquae praedictae impeditur.

c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   16.23:  Pieres..bad me toten on the tree..With thre pyles was
it vnder-pi3te.
c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   16.30:  With þe firste pyle [C: plaunke] I palle hym down,
þat is, potencia dei patris.
c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   16.86:  Pieres for pure tene þat o pile [C: shoriere] he lau3te
And hitte after hym.
(1407) in Salzman Building in Engl.  85:  [2] Pylschoun [weighing..100 lb.].
c1425(c1400) Ld.Troy (LdMisc 595)   13388:  Thei alle are went of here hales; Thei passe her
piles & her pales.
(1426) Reg.Chichele in Cant.Yk.S.42 (Lamb 69)   340:  Item, to the sustentacion of the brigge of
London and especiell for pylys to ben there dryve x li.
(1442) RParl.  5.44a:  And atte no maner of person..lette nor stoppe the seid passage of Shippes
or cours of water, with stone, piles, or any othir disceyte in any wise in the said water called
Dike.
a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)   4611:  Longe pyles & grete dide þey make;
ffaste yn Temese dide þey hem stake, Euerylkon wyþ iren schod.
c1450(c1425) Brut-1419 (Cmb Kk.1.12)   388/19:  And þe King dede make at Pountlarge, ouyr
þe watir of Sayne, a strong and a my3ty Cheyne of Iren, & put it þrou3 grete pilez.
(1470) in Salzman Building in Engl.  84:  To Morice White..a great to dryve pyles in the
fundacion of the Bulwerk.
a1500(a1470) Brut-1461(1) (Add 10099)   500/23,24:  Þe Duke..toke his barge..for to haue go
thrugh London Brigg; & thrugh misguydynge of þe barge, it ouer-threw on þe Pyles..but þe
Duke..lepe vpon the piles.
1532 rev.(c1385) Usk TL (Thynne:Skeat)   64/116:  And right as see yeveth flood, so draweth
see ebbe and pulleth ayen under wawe al the firste out-throwe, but-if good pyles of noble
governaunce in love..ben sadly grounded; to [read: the] whiche holde thilke gravel as for a tyme.
1543(1464) Hardyng Chron.B (Grafton)   p.78:  He..came..Into Thamis, where Cassibalayn tho
Great pyles of tree and yron sette hym again, His shippes to peryshe.

(b)    a1450(1408) *Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)   13b:  How olde werriours were vsed to juste with
vannes and pley wiþ þe pile or þe pale.

(a1460) Vegetius(2) (Pmb-C 243)   360:  Noo man..is seyn prevaile..That with the pile [L palum]
nath first gret exercise.
(a1460) Vegetius(2) (Pmb-C 243)   362:  Have vche his pile or pale vp fixed faste, And as in
werre vppon his mortal foo, With wightynesse & wepon most he caste To fighte stronge.
(a1460) Vegetius(2) (Pmb-C 243)   423:  A dart..teche hym it to ster And caste it at that pile.
(a1460) Vegetius(2) (Pmb-C 243)   439:  Set hert & eye vppon that pile or pale; Shoot nygh or
on.

(c)    c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)   3605:  Weynes & cartes þai han y-nome..Y-ioined hij han
þe gret piles [F postz] Ginnes þai made on selcouþe wise.

4.

Her. A wedge-shaped charge, a pile.

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5.

(a) In surnames; (b) in place names [see Smith PNElem. 2.64].

oed
pile, n.1

(paɪl)
Forms: 1 pil, 4– pile, (4–8 pyle, 6 pyll, 7 peil).

[OE. píl masc. = OLG. *pîl (MLG., MDu. pîl, Du. pijl dart, arrow, also ON. píla fem., arrow,
Da., Sw. pīl, from LG.), OHG., MHG. pfîl, Ger. pfeil dart, arrow, shaft, West Ger. pîl, a. L. {pīl}-
um the heavy javelin of the Roman foot-soldier, orig. ‘pestle’.
   The L. pīlum was no doubt adopted by the Germans in the L. sense ‘javelin’, which passed on
the continent into that of ‘dart’, and hence ‘arrow’, in which latter sense it superseded the native
word. In OE. the sense ‘javelin’ passed into those of ‘dart’ and ‘pointed stake’ (= L. sudis): but
the former is known only in a few poetic compounds, fliᴁe-píl flying-dart, hylde-píl battle dart,
and the earliest examples of the simple word in this sense are ME.; if applied to an arrow, it was
only as subsidiary to native names.

1.1 †a.1.a A dart; a shaft; (?) an arrow. Obs. (weapon)

   a 1000 Be Mannes Mod 26 Bið þæt æfþonca eal ᴁefylled feondes fliᴁepilum.    ― Riddles
xviii. 6 Frea þæt bihealdeð hu me of hrife fleoᴁað hyldepilas.    13‥ Guy Warw. (A.) 3490
Scheteþ wiþ piles & ȝif hem deþ wounde.    c 1400 Destr. Troy 6976 Þen Paris‥with a pile
sharp, Rut hym in thurgh þe rybbis with a roid wond.

b.1.b The pointed head of a dart, lance, or arrow. (part of weapon)

   1592 Constable Sonn. i. v, Thine eye the pyle is of a murdring dart.    c 1611 Chapman Iliad iv.
545 Through both his temples struck the dart, the wood of one side show'd, The pile out of the
other look'd.    1627 Drayton Court of Fairy Wks. (1748) 166 His spear—a bent both stiff and
strong,‥The pile was of a horse-fly's tongue.    1639 Fuller Holy War ii. x. (1840) 63 Like an
arrow well feathered, but with a blunt pile; he flew swift, but did not sink deep.    1700 Hickes
Let. in Pepys' Corr. 19 June, Elf arrows‥are of a triangular form, somewhat like the beard or
pile of our old English arrows of war.    [1796 Pegge Anonym. (1809) 103 Fletcher, he that
trimmed arrows by adding the feathers; Arrowsmith, he that made the piles.]    1875 Encycl. Brit.
II. 376/1 Arrows are manufactured generally of red-pine timber,‥glued on one end, upon the
point of which the iron pile is fixed.    1894 H. Walrond in Longman & Walrond Archery xviii.
304 Arrows are‥called ‘self’ or ‘footed’ according as to whether they are footed or not with
hard wood at the pile end.    1939 P. H. Gordon New Archery ii. vi. 67 The solid-tipped ‘parallel
pile’ is preferable to hollow-point ‘bullet ferrules’.    1958 Wiseman & Brundle Archery 83 The
piles or tips of arrows are made of brass, steel, aluminium, horn or plastic.    1972 T. Foy
Beginner's Guide Archery xvi. 124 In the eighteenth-century the Turks were superb Flight Shots,
and they invented ‘barrelled’ arrows which were thicker at the centre than at the nock and pile.
1979 R. Laidlaw Lion is Rampant xiii. 104 They were target arrows with conical piles.

c.1.c Used to render L. pīlum, the heavy javelin of the ancient Roman foot-soldier. (pilum –
roman heavy javelin)

   c 1620 Fletcher & Mass. False One i. i, How the Roman Peils‥drew Roman blood.    1627
May Lucan i. 8 Knowne Ensignes Ensignes doe defie, Piles against Piles, 'gainst Eagles Eagles
fly. (Note. If any man quarrell at the word Pile, as thinking it scarse English, I desire them to give
a better word.)    1687 Dryden Hind & P. ii. 161 That was but civil war, an equal set, Where piles
with piles, and eagles eagles met.    1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. xvi. (Roxb.) 89/1 The Germans
came so violently vpon the Romans that the souldiers cast away their piles, and betooke them to
their swords.    1718 Rowe tr. Lucan i. 7 Piles against piles oppos'd in impious fight, And Eagles
against Eagles bending flight.    1850 Merivale Rom. Emp. (1865) I. vi. 273 The Romans threw
their piles, and rushed headlong upon the unwieldy mass.

2.2 †a.2.a A spike, a nail; a spine (of a prickly plant, in ME. of a hedgehog); the pointer of a
sun-dial. (metonymy – plant/hedgehog) narrowing – sun-dial)

   c 1000 Ælfric Saint's Lives v. 388 He ᴁehæfte [hi] on anum micclum stocce, and mid isenum
pilum heora ilas ᴁefæstnode and cwæð þæt hi sceoldon swa standan on þam pilum.    c 1000 Sax.
Leechd. I. 304 Heo [sea-holly] hafað stelan hwitne‥on ðæs heahnysse ufeweardre beoð
acennede scearpe and þyrnyhte pilas.    a 1100 O.E. Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 337/6 Gnomon
dæᴁmæles pil.    a 1200 Fragm. Ælfric's Gram. (ed. Phillips 1838), Prikiende so piles on ile.    c 
1225, 1387 [see ilespiles s.v. il].    c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 179/50 Heo stikeden al-so þicke on him,
so yrichon deth of piles.    Ibid. 298/49 Ase ful ase is an Irchepil of piles al-a-boute.

b.2.b A (pointed) blade (of grass). [Cf. Da. dial. pile, græspile, Fl. pijl, graspijl.] (a specific part
of a plant) narrowing

   1513 Douglas Æneis xiii. Prol. 25 At euery pilis point and cornis croppis The techrys stude, as
lemand beriall droppis.    1607 Hieron Wks. I. 153 More sinnes then there bee grasse piles vpon
the earth.    1687 A. Lovell tr. Thevenot's Trav. i. 291 There shall not a pile of Grass be left
within his Kingdom.    1765 Museum Rust. IV. xxviii. 122 Appearance of red clover, where not a
pile of this grass had before been known.    1812 Sir J. Sinclair Syst. Husb. Scot. i. 372 The grass
was‥smaller in the pile, and more luxuriant in its growth.    1895 Crockett Men of Moss-Hags
xxi, Every pile of the grass that springs so sweetly in the meadows.

c.2.c A single glume or pale (of chaff). Sc.

   1786 Burns Address to Unco Guid heading, The cleanest corn‥May hae some pyles o' caff in.

3. a.3.a A pointed stake or post; spec. in later use, a large and heavy beam of timber or trunk of
a tree, usually sharpened at the lower end, of which a number are driven into the bed of a river, or
into marshy or uncertain ground for the support of some superstructure, as a bridge, pier, quay,
wall, the foundation of a house, etc. Also extended to cylindrical or other hollow iron pillars,
used for the same purposes.
   In prehistoric times villages or settlements were built upon wooden piles in lakes: see pile-
dwelling, etc. in 5. (cf. OE pael and Polish palisada). narrowing.

   ? a 1100 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) Introd. (from Bæda), Ða ᴁenamon þa Walas, and adrifon
sumre ea ford ealne mid scearpum pilum [Bæda sudibus, D. stængum: cf. Wr.-Wülcker 509/14
sudibus stengum] greatum innan þam welere sy ea hatte Temese.    c 1330 R. Brunne Chron.
Wace (Rolls) 4611 Longe pyles & grete dide þey [Britons] make; Faste yn Temese dide þey hem
stake.    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xvi. 23 Þe tree‥With þre pyles was it vnder-piȝte.    1387–8 T.
Usk Test. Love ii. v. (Skeat) l. 116 If the pyles ben trewe, the gravel and sand wol abyde.    1480
Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxlviii. (1482) 316 The duk hym self with ij or thre lepe vpon the pyles, and
so were saued with helpe of men that were aboue the bridge.    1497 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896)
171 The brekyng vp of the dokke hede at Portesmouth weyng vt of the piles & shorys.    1530
Palsgr. 254/1 Pyle to be set in a fauty grounde, pilot.    1555 Eden Decades 226 Theyr houses‥
are‥buylded aboue the grownde vppon proppes & pyles.    1602 Warner Alb. Eng. Epit. (1612)
356 Two walles, the one of Turffe, and the other of Pyles and Tymber strongly and artificially
interposed.    1768–74 Tucker Lt. Nat. (1834) II. 405 Like the houses of Amsterdam. which are
reported to stand upon piles driven deep into the quagmire.    1863 Lyell Antiq. Man ii. (ed. 3) 17
Habitations‥constructed on platforms raised above the lake, and resting on piles.

fig.    1886 Ruskin Præterita I. xii. 416 Drive down the oaken pile of a principle.

b.3.b With various qualifications expressing purpose or nature: e.g.

   bearing p., bridge p., foundation p., guide p., hollow p., sheathing p., short p., weir p., etc. close
pile, a timber pile forming one of many set close together; false pile, a pile to which additional
length is given after driving; filling pile, one of those filling up the space between gauge piles;
hydraulic pile, a pile sunk in sand by means of a powerful jet of water led either inside or outside
of it. Also fender p., gauge p., guard p., guide p., pneumatic p., screw p., sheet or sheeting p., stay
p., for which see these words.

   1859 G. Meredith R. Feverel I. xvii. 266 The Magnetic Youth leaned round to note his
proximity to the weir-piles.    1875 Knight Dict. Mech. II. 1700/2 A hollow pile is a cylinder
which is sunk by excavation proceeding inside.    1877 Ibid. III, Short-pile‥driven as closely as
possible without causing the driving of one pile to raise the adjacent ones. They are used to
compress and consolidate ground for foundations.

†c.3.c A stake or post fixed in the ground, at which swordsmen practised their strokes. Obs.
rare.

   c 1480 Knyghthode & Batayle (MS. Cott. Titus A. xxiii. lf. 6 b), Nooman‥is seyn prevayle, In
feeld‥That with the pile, nathe firste grete exercise.

4.4 Her. A charge, regarded by some as an ordinary, by others as a sub-ordinary, consisting of a

figure formed by two lines meeting in an acute angle (generally assumed to represent an arrow-
head), issuing, when not otherwise stated, from the chief or top of the escutcheon, with the point
downwards. in pile: arranged in the form of a pile. party per pile: divided by lines in the form of a
pile.
   [App. a special use of sense 1 b, or directly from L. pīlum. Not known in OF.: Littré has it as a
neologism, pile masc., and refers it to L. pīlum; but it may have been taken directly from Eng.
heraldry.]

   1486 Bk. St. Albans, Her. E v b, Certan armys in the wich iij. pilis mete to gedyr in oon coone.
‥ He berith golde iij. pilis of sable.    1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccxxxvii. 337 The baner‥was
of syluer a sharpe pyle goules.    1562 Leigh Armorie 46 The eight particion, which is to be
blased on thys sorte. Party per pile in pointe, Or and Sable.    Ibid. 143 He beareth Ermin, a Pile
in pointe Gueules.    1610 J. Guillim Heraldry ii. vi. (1611) 62 He beareth Argent a Triple Pile,
Flory on the tops, issuing out of the Sinister base, in Bend towards the Dexter corner, Sable. This
sort of bearing of the Pile, hath a resemblance of so many Piles driuen into some water-worke,
and‥incorporated at their heads.    Ibid. ii. vi. (1660) 73 A Pile is an Ordinary consisting of a
two-fold line formed after the manner of a Wedge; that is to say broad at the upper end, and‥
meeting together at the lower end in an Acute-angle.    1704 J. Harris Lex. Techn. I, Pile, in
Heraldry,‥probably something like the Figure of the Roman Pilum, which was a tapering Dart,
about five Foot long, and sharpened at the Point with Steel.    1766–87 Porny Heraldry (ed. 4)
135 The sixteenth is Argent, three piles meeting near the point of the base Azure.    c 1828 Berry
Encycl. Her. I. Gloss., Pile, triple, or triple⁓pointed, in base, bendwise,‥by Ferne, termed a
pile, naisant, in bend, triple-flory.    1864 Boutell Her. Hist. & Pop. ix. (ed. 3) 50 Sa., three
Swords in pile arg.    1872 Ruskin Eagle's Nest §235 The Pile, a wedge-shaped space of colour
with the point downwards, represents what we still call a pile; a piece of timber driven into moist
ground.

5.5 attrib. and Comb. (from 3). a.5.a attrib. Of a pile, as pile-head, pile-wood; formed of piles, as
pile-breakwater, pile-dam, pile-planking, pile-structure; supported on piles, as pile-bridge, pile-
habitation, pile-lighthouse, pile-pier, pile-road, pile-settlement, pile-village; used as a pile, as
pile-plank. b.5.b obj. and obj. gen., as pile-fixer, pile guide, pile-screwing. c.5.c instrumental, as
pile-supported adj. d.5.d Special Comb.: pile-building, a building erected on piles, esp. one of
such dwellings of certain prehistoric and primitive peoples; so also pile-builder, pile-built a.; pile-
cap, a cap or plate for the head of a pile; also, a beam connecting the heads of piles; pile-drawer,
a machine for extracting piles; pile-dwelling, a dwelling built on piles, especially in shallow
water, as a lake, but sometimes on dry ground; hence pile-dweller; pile-engine = pile-driver; pile-
hoop, a hoop or band round the head of a pile to keep it from splitting; pile-house, a house built
on piles, a pile-dwelling; pile-saw, a saw for cutting off piles below the surface of the water;
hence pile-sawing; pile-shoe, an iron point fixed to the lower end of a pile; pile-worm, the teredo,
or other worm or animal which bores into piles. See also pile-driver, pileways, pile-work.

   1895 Outing (U.S.) XXVI. 445/1 Under the protection of two huge *pile-breakwaters.

   1899 Westm. Gaz. 9 Dec. 5/3 The scarcity of timber or other material suitable for the erection
of a trestle or *pile bridge.    1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 643/1 Pile bridge, a bridge whose
superstructure is carried on piles.

   1884 Nature 19 June 169/1 There are good reasons for believing these *pile-builders are the
direct descendants of the pre-Aryan aboriginals.

   1865 Lubbock Preh. Times v. 127 The Lake-dwellers followed two different systems‥which
he distinguishes as‥*Pile⁓buildings, and‥Crannoges.    1886 Athenæum 24 Apr. 556/1 The
pile-buildings of the Swiss lakes.

   1851 A. O. Hall Manhattaner 5 It was a modest commercial plain; *pile-built, and earth filled.
1898 C. E. Fowler Coffer-dam Process for Piers iv. 49 The small hammer‥is used for sheet pile
work by inserting a ‘follower’ of oak which fits the base or pile cap, and which has a slit in the
lower end to fit the sheet pile.    1903 Kipling Five Nations 41 Do you know the pile-built village
where the sago-dealers trade?    1944 [see piling vbl. n.1 2].    1975 R. Holmes Introd. Civil
Engin. Construction iv. 166 Pile caps are usually constructed of concrete to such a depth as will
ensure full transfer of load to the piles and, at the same time, resist punching shear.

   1800 Hull Advertiser 5 Apr. 1/3 The constructing of a *pile dam opposite to the clough.
   1880 Dawkins Early Man 302 The *pile-dwellers possessed vegetables not traceable to wild
stocks now growing in Switzerland.

   1863 Lyell Antiq. Man 29 It relates to the earliest age of *pile-dwelling.    1874 Sayce Compar.
Philol. iii. 114 Their [the Etruscans'] predecessors of the Neolithic age whose pile-dwellings‥
have yielded wheat and coral, evidences of Eastern intercourse.

   1776 G. Semple Building in Water 36 The Platform of the *Pile-engine.    1853 Sir H. Douglas
Milit. Bridges (ed. 3) 154 The piles were driven by pile-engines‥constructed on the boats of the
country.

   1974 People's Jrnl. (Inverness & Northern Counties ed.) 29 June 22 (caption) In one of the
biggest lifts ever in the off-shore oil industry a 940-ton *pile guide cluster is lifted into position to
be fixed to the base of the huge oil rig jacket now being finished at Nigg.    1975 Offshore Sept.
11/1 The ‘Heerema Steel Structure’ consists essentially of a jacket made up of four steel towers
which fit into a steel base frame incorporating pile guides.

   1886 A. Winchell Walks Geol. Field 283 Jars of dried apples and wheat‥have been yielded
from the *pile⁓habitations.

   1875 W. McIlwraith Guide Wigtownshire 45 Dowalton Loch‥celebrated by the discovery

there of *pile⁓houses.    1884 Nature 19 June 169/2 The races who now build these pile-houses,
often on hill-tops.

   1895 Daily News 27 Sept. 5/4 Unlike the old *pile piers, it is a substantial structure of masonry.

   1823 P. Nicholson Pract. Builder 590 *Pile-planks, planks of which the ends are sharpened, so
as to enter into the bottom of a canal.    1838 Civ. Eng. & Archit. Jrnl. I. 150/1 A scaffold was
erected, upon which the pile drivers were placed for driving the sheet piles (pile planks)‥of the
best North Carolina heart pine.

   1793 R. Mylne Rep. Thames 24 A Jettee of *Pile-planking‥should be run a little way down
from the Point.

   1860 Weale Dict. Terms s.v., As a considerable length of the Utica and Syracuse railroad
passes through a deep swamp, a foundation of great permanency was required: this gave rise to a
modification of the superstructure, and formed that which is known as *pile-road.

   1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 1703/1 Vogler's *pile-sawing attachment for boats.

   1897 R. Munro Preh. Problems 304 A *pile-settlement of the Bronze Age.

   1495 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 150 A pykas and ij *pyles shone.    1844 Mech. Mag. XL. 54
Improvement in the formation of pile-shoes.
   1887 Westm. Rev. June 340 Along this line [Barmston and Skipsea Drain] five or six other
*pile-structures have been found.

   1869 Routledge's Ev. Boy's Ann. 389 An old *pile-supported pier.

   1879 Athenæum 6 Sept. 312/1 *Pile-villages have been found on the shores of Gmunden.

   1894 C. Welch Tower Bridge 133 Snuff-boxes and other memorials‥turned from the *pile
wood.

   1733 tr. Rousset (title) Observations on the Sea or *Pile Worms discover'd in Pile or
Woodworks in Holland.

mægen-wudu
bt
mægen-wudu, a.; m. A mighty spear-shaft:--þegn Hrōðgāres cwehte mægenwudu mundum Hrothgar's
thane shook his mighty shaft with his hands, Beo. Th. 477; B. 236.

bts

ch
mægenwudu m. strong spear, B236.

med

oed

ord
bt
ord, es; m. I. a point, (a) of a weapon :-- Ǣlces wǣpnes ord mucro, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 35. Se ord (ðæs
speres), L. Alf. pol. 36; Th. i. 84, 17. Seaxes ord, Exon. Th. 472, 6; Rä. 61, 12. Wordes ord breōsthord
þurhbræc, Beo. Th. 5576; B. 2791. Ne ofstong hē hiene mid dȳ speres orde. Ðæt is ðonne swelc mon mid
forewearde orde stinge ... suā suā Assael wæs deād būtan orde non cum recta, sed aversa hasta
transforavit ... quasi sine ferro moriuntur, Past. 40, 5; Swt. 297, 10-23. Mid gāres orde, Cd. Th. 92, 2;
Gen. 1522. Hē sette his swurdes ord tōgeānes his innoþe, Homl. Th. ii. 480, 14. Ðæt gebearh feore wið ord
and wið ecge (cf. Icel. með oddi ok eggju) it protected life from thrust and cut, Beo. Th. 3102; B. 1549.
(b) putting a part for the whole, a spear, pointed weapon :-- Mē sceal wǣpen niman, ord and īren (spear
and sword), Byrht. Th. 139, 12; By. 253. Hwā ðǣr mid orde mihte on fǣgean men feorh gewinnan, wīgan
mid wǣpnum, 135, 31; By. 124. Hit is mycel nēdþearf ðæt hiē man forspille, and mid īrenum þislum and
ordum hiē man sleā, Blickl. Homl. 189, 30. Hildesercum, bordum and ordum, Elen. Kmbl. 469; El. 235.
(c) of other point-shaped, conical things :-- Ord apicem, Wrt. Voc. ii. 73, 64. Ða hwīle ðe se mōna ðære
sceade ord (the shadow of the earth) ofer yrnþ, Lchdm. iii. 240, 26. Hafaþ tungena gehwylc xx orda, hafaþ
orda gehwylc engles snytro, Salm. Kmbl. 461-464; Sal. 231-232. (d) of persons, (1) one who is at the
topmost point, a head, chief, prince :-- Æþelinga ord Christ, Exon. Th. 32, 19; Cri. 515: 46, 22; Cri. 741:
53, 5; Cri. 846: Elen. Kmbl. 785; El. 393. Burgwarena ord, 462, 22; Hö. 56. (2) of position, head, front :--
Se ðe on orde geōng he who went at the head of the band, Beo. Th. 6242; B. 3125. II. line of battle,
forefront :-- Se ord on here acies, Ælfc. Gr. 5; Som. 4, 14. Hī Pantan streām bestōdon, Eāst-Seaxena ord
and se æschere, Byrht. Th. 133, 52; By. 69. Elamitarna ordes wīsa, Cd. Th. 121, 3; Gen. 2004. On orde
stōd Eādweard Edward stood in the forefront of the battle, Byrht. Th. 139, 52; By. 273. III. the beginning,
origin, source (applied to persons and things) :-- Se ðe (the devil) is ord ǣlcere leāsunge and yfelnysse,
Homl. Th. i. 4, 29. Se leahter (pride) is ord and ende ǣlces yfeles, ii. 220, 34. Ord moncynnes (Adam), Cd.
Th. 68, 2; Gen. 1111. Dæges ord day-break, 174, 10; Gen. 2876. Sume ūre þēningbec onginnaþ on
Aduentum Domini; nis ðeāh ðǣr forðȳ ðæs geāres ord, Homl. Th. i. 98, 27. From orde ōþ ende forþ, Elen.
Kmbl. 1176; El. 590. Hē folcmǣgþa fruman āweahte, æþelinga ord, ðā hē Adam sceōp, 77, 20; Gen. 1278.
Sōna ongeat cyning ord and ende ðæs ðe him ȳwed wæs, 225, 30; Dan. 162. Ord onstellan to make a
beginning, be the source of, 272, 4; Sat. 114: Bd. 4, 24; S. 597, 21. Ðæt ðīn sprǣc hæbbe ǣgðer ge ord ge
ende, Past. 49; Swt. 385, 13. [Laym., A. R., O. and N. ord: Orm. ord and ende: O. Sax. O. L. Ger. O. Frs.
ord: O. H. Ger. ort angulus, aculeus, acies, initium: Icel. oddr the point of a weapon, head of a troop,
leader.]

bts
ord. I a. add :-- On þām ordum þāra þorna in illis spinarum aculeis, Gr. D. 101, 16. III. [perhaps here
rather than under I d (1) belongs Burgwarena ord (applied to Adam), Hö. 56. In v. 35 hell is spoken of as
a burh, and the burhwaran are the departed in hell, of whom Adam was the progenitor.] Add :-- Hē bið
heora deāðes ord eorum mortis auctor fit, Chrd. 92, 23. [O. Fr. mith egge and mid orde.]

ch
ord m. point, spear-point, spear, B,CP :
source, beginning, Æ,CP : front, vanguard,
Æ : chief, prince; in pi. first men, the
Jtower. ['oro"]

med
(a) The point of a sword, spear, pen, etc.; also fig.; (b) a sharp weapon or implement; (c) a
beginning; ~ and ende, ende and ~, ~ from ende, ende of ~, from beginning to end, completely;
bouten ende and ~, eternally; withouten ~ and ende, eternal; (d) ~ and ende, beginning and
end, all; (e) in place names [see Smith PNElem. 2.56].

oed
† {ord} Obs.

Also 2–4 hord, 3 ort, 4 oord, 4–5 word(e.

[OE. ord = OS. ord point (MLG. ord point, edge, corner, MDu. oort, ort, ord point, beginning,
Du. oord place, country, oort quarter), OHG., MHG. ort point, edge, corner, beginning (Ger. ort
point, edge, corner, place), ON. oddr point of a weapon, front, leader (Da. odd, od point, Sw, udd
point, pick):—OTeut. *ozdo-z: cf. odd.]
1.1 A point, esp. of a weapon; hence, a pointed weapon, a spear.
   (With first quot. cf. ON. oddr ok egg point and edge.)

   Beowulf 1549 Breost-net broden þæt ᴁe-bearh feore wið ord ond wið ecge.    c 897 K. Ælfred
Gregory's Past. xl. 297 Ne ofstong he hiene no mid ðy speres orde.    c 1000 Ælfric Hom. II. 480
He‥sette his swurdes ord toᴁeanes his innoðe, and feol him on uppon.    c 1205 Lay. 20658
Turnden heo heore ordes, Strikeden & sloȝen.    a 1300 Cursor M. 7770 (Cott.) Þan drogh saul
self his suord And ran him-self a-pon the ord [Gott. hord].    Ibid. 10626 (Gött.) Hir witt, hir
vertu, hir loue word, May na man write wid pennys ord [Fairf., Tr. point].    a 1400 Disp. Mary &
Cross 149 in Leg. Rood (1871) 136 Þi fruit is prikked with speres ord.

2.2 Point of origin, beginning; esp. in ord and end.

   c 897 K. Ælfred Gregory's Past. xlix. 385 ᴀebid ðu‥oð ðu wite ðæt ðin spræc hæbbe æᴁðer ᴁe
ord ᴁe ende.    c 1000 Ælfric Hom. II. 220 Se leahter is ord and ende ælces yfeles.    a 1200 Moral
Ode 85 He is hord buten horde and ende buten ende.    c 1200 Ormin 18620 Godess Sune
ankennedd Wass aȝȝ occ aȝȝ wiþþutenn ord.    a 1225 Juliana 24 Iesu crist godes sune þe is ort ant
ende of al.    c 1410 Chron. Eng. 174 in Ritson Metr. Rom. II. 277 Y schal telle, ord and ende,
The rihte sothe.

pǣl
bt
pǣl, es; m. A javelin :-- Pǣlas pila, An. Ox. 19, 3. [From Latin palus?]. Cf. pāl.

bts
ch pal in. 'pole,' stake, post, JFJf3342 : spade, pentecosten m. 'Pentecost,' A,Æ.
[L. palus] pēo=pfe

ch
pal in. 'pole,' stake, post, JFJf3342 : spade, pentecosten m. 'Pentecost,' A,Æ.
[L. palus] pēo=pfe

med
(a) A stave, spike, or stake; also, a defensive palisade [last quot.]; (b) a fort, a stronghold
constructed of wood; a castle; (c) ?a gallows, or the cross beam of a gallows; (d) in surnames.

oed
d.2.d The long handle of a scythe or the like. dial.

   1828 Craven Gloss. (ed. 2), Pow, a pole, a scythe pow, the long handle of a scythe.    1903 Eng.
Dial. Dict., (S. Lancs.) Scythe pow, stang pow.
sceaft
bt
sceaft, es; m. A smooth, round, straight stick or pole, a shaft. I. generally (1) the shaft of a spear (cf. Icel.
skaft the shaft, spjōt the point) :-- Spereleās sceaft contus, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 42. Gif se ord siē þreō fingre
ufor ðonne hindeweard sceaft, L. Alf. pol. 36; Th. i. 84, 17, 18. His sceaft ætstōd ætforan him, and ðæt
hors hine bær forþ, swā ðæt ðæt spere him eode þurh ūt, Homl. Skt. i. 12, 53. Hē sceāf, mid his scylde,
ðæt se sceaft tōbærst, and ðæt spere sprengde, Byrht. Th. 135, 52; By. 136. Gār sceal on sceafte, ecg on
sweorde, Exon. Th. 346, 12; Gn. Ex. 202. [He igrap his spere stronge . . . þe scæft al tobrac, Laym. 6494.]
Or (2) a spear :-- Sceaft asta, quiris, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 18: 84, 24. Ðes sceft (scæft, sceaft) cuspis, Ælfc. Gr.
9, 28; Zup. 56, 4. Scyld sceal cempan, sceaft reāfere, Exon. Th. 341, 23; Gn. Ex. 130. Scæftes ł speres
ðīnes hastae tuae, Cant. Ab. 11. Ðæt yrre ðæt geþyld mid ðam sceafte (mid his spere, B.) slihþ ira
patientiam conto percutit, Glos. Prud. A. 18. Scyld sceft oncwyð, Fins. Th. 12; Fin. 7. Hlyn wearð on
wīcum scylda and sceafta, Cd. Th. 124, 13; Gen. 2062. Deāwig sceaftum, 199, 25; Exod. 344. Hig bǣron
lange sceaftas, and ne cōman hig nā tō feohtanne, ac ðæt hig woldan mid hlōþe geniman, Shrn. 38, 9. II.
the shaft of an arrow :-- Sceaft feðergearwum fūs, Beo. Th. 6228; B. 3118. [Þe ssaft (the arrow that killed
William Rufus), þat was wyþoute, gryslych he tobrec, R. Glouc. 419, 2.] III. a pole :-- Fana hwearfode
scīr on sceafte, Met. 1. 11. Ic gegaderode mē stuþan sceaftas . . . Ic lǣre ǣlcne ðara ðe manigne wǣn
hæbbe, ðæt hē menige tō ðam ilcan wuda ðār ic ðās stuþan sceaftas cearf, Shrn. 163, 5-14. [Moyses made
a wirme of bras, And henget hege up on a saft, Gen. and Ex. 3899.] III a. something shaped like a shaft, a
taper :-- Swā swā eles gecynd biþ ðæt hē beorhtor scīneþ ðonne wex on sceafte (wax in the form of a
taper or (?) a wax candle in a candlestick, cf. candelstæf), Blickl. Homl. 129, 1. IV. The word occurs in
the passage that defines the distance to which the king's 'grið' extended, but the origin of the phrase, of
which it forms part, is not evident :-- Ðus feor sceal beōn ðæs cinges grið fram his burhgeate ðǣr hē is
sittende on feōwer healfe his, ðæt is, .iii. mīla, and .iii. furlang, and .iii. æcera brǣde, and .ix. fōta, and .ix.
scæfta munda, and .ix. berecorna, L. Ath. iv. 5; Th. i. 224, 7-10. Cf. Tria miliaria, et .iii. quarantene, et .ix.
acre latitudine, et .ix. pedes, et .ix. palme, et .ix. grana hordei, L. H. i. 16; Th. i. 526, 15. As the name of a
measure of about six inches the phrase continued to exist. Stratmann gives schaftmonde, Nares cites a
passage from Harrington's Ariosto in which shaftman occurs; in Ray's Collection (1691) shafman,
shafmet, shaftment is explained 'the measure of the fist with the thumb set up.' v. also Halliwell's Dict.,
and Jamieson's, s.v. schaftmon, shathmont. For the latter form see Sir W. Scott's Antiquary, c. 8 (at the
end). [O. Sax. skaft a spear: O. H. Ger. scafe hostile, hasta, jaculum, telum, arundo: Icel. skapt, skaft a
shaft, haft (of an axe).] v. deoreþ-, here-, lōh, wæl-sceaft.

bts

ch
sceaft (æ,e) m. staff, pole, 'shaft,' Met.WW:
spear-shaft, spear, Ǽ ; CP.
med

oed

spere
bt
spere, es; n. A spear, lance, pike, javelin :-- Spere lancea, falarica, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 11: 84, 17: falarica, ii.
86, 82: hasta, i. 287, 4: ii. 43, 19. Getridwet spere hasta, i. 35, 40. His sceaft ætstōd ætforan him, swā ðæt
ðæt spere him eode þurh ūt, Homl. Skt. i. 12, 55: Byrht. Th. 135, 53; By. 137. Nægle oððe spere cuspide,
Wrt. Voc. ii. 21, 24. Ecg sceal on sweorde, ord spere, Exon. Th. 346, 14; Gn. Ex. 204. Mid spere lancea,
Jn. Skt. 19, 34. Hē nam him spere on hand accepit lanceam in manu, Bd. 2, 13; S. 517, 8. Ða speru
sōðfæsðnesse veritatis jacula, Past. 35, 5; Swt. 245, 9; 38, 6; Swt. 277, 22. Spera sparorum, Wrt. Voc. ii.
96, 33. Mid sperum tōsticad confossum vulneribus, Ors. 3, 9; Swt. 128, 14. Spiorum (swiorum, Wrt.)
contis, Wrt. Voc. ii. 21, 57. Speoru contos, 104, 58. Speru, 14, 72 : 20, 15 : ansatas (cf. ansatas ætgāras,
3, 68), 5, 44: 88, 16. Speru, boltas catapultas, 18, 58: 85, 16. Hī lēton of folman feōlhearde speru fleōgan,
Byrht. Th. 134, 63; By. 108. ¶ In the following the word refers to a shooting pain or stitch :--Ūt lytel spere
gif hēr inne siē, Lchdm. iii. 52, 18. [O. Sax. sper; n. : O. Frs. O. H. Ger. sper; m.hasta, lancea, sparus,
catapulta: Icel. spjör; n. pl. (poetical).] v. ātor-, bār-, deāþ-, huntig-, pull-, scot-, wæl-, wīg-spere.

bts
spere. Add :-- Þæt yrre slihð  geðyld mid his spere (sceafte, v. l. conto), Prud. 18 b.  yrre scȳt his
spere (lanceam) ongeān  geðyld, 20 b. Swā sē āsent speru and flāna sicut qui mittit lanceas et sagittas,
Scint. 193, 16. v. eofor-, nægel-spere; gewriþ.

ch

med

1.

(a) A thrusting weapon, spear; a horseman's spear, lance; a javelin, dart; also fig.; (b) ~ and (or)
sheld, knif (sword) or ~, sheld (sword) and ~, etc.; -- often used coll.; (c) ~ of pes (werre), a
blunted (pointed) spear; ~ garnished, a spear prepared for jousting; at his ~, in military service;
grounden ~, a sharpened spear; ?scottish ~, a small throwing spear of Scottish make [cp.
Scottish adj. (b)]; under a ~, armed; with speres ord, at spear-point, by the spear, by force; ben
~ and sheld (sheld and ~), to be a defense (for sb.); beren ~, wield power; casten ~ in the reste,
couchen ~, couch (one's) lance; dressen ~, point (one's) spear; (d) in cpds. and combs.: ~ berere,
one who wields a spear; ~ hed, q.v.; ~ lenge, the length of a spear, used as a measure of distance;
also, as adj.: as long as a spear-length; ~ lengthe, the length of a spear, used as a measure of
length, height, distance, etc.; ~ man, one who fights with a spear, a spearman; also fig.[quot. ?
a1449]; ~ pointe, the tip of a spear; ~ shaft, q.v.; ~ staf (tre), a spear shaft; ~ wort, q.v.; bor ~
[see bor n. 5.]; red ~, a spear of reed; -- used as a type of unreliability or frailty; also, ?some kind
of wind instrument made of reed, perh. a small flute or pipe[quot. c1430]; (e) in comparisons and
fig. expressions as a type of sharpness or pain; also in proverbs; ~ bite; ~ o lecherie, a pang of
lechery; (f) a spearhead; also, a spear shaft.

oed
spear, n.1

(spɪə(r))

Forms: α. 1–7 spere (3 spære), 3–6 sper (5 sperre), 5–7 speere. β. 5–6 speir, 5 speire, speyre,
spayre, 6 spair. γ. 6–7 speare, 7– spear.

[OE. spere, = OFris. spiri, spere, sper (WFris. spear), MDu. spere, speer (Du. speer), OS. and
MLG., OHG. and MHG. sper (G. speer), ON. pl. spjǫr; MSw. spär and obs. Da. spær are from
MLG. It is doubtful whether L. sparus, hunting-spear, is related.]

I. 1.I.1 a.I.1.a A thrusting weapon consisting of a stout wooden staff of some length, on which a
sharp-pointed head, usually of iron or steel, is socketed or otherwise securely fixed; a lance; also,
a shorter or lighter weapon of this kind used for throwing.

α    c 725 Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) C 610 Contos, speoru.    c 893 K. Ælfred Oros. iii. xvii. §1 Þa
for he‥& funde hiene ænne be weᴁe licgan mid sperum tosticad.    c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. John
xix. 34 An ðara cempa mið spere sidu his untynde.    c 1000 Ælfric Saints' Lives xii. 55 Þæt hors
hine bær forð swa þæt spere him eode þurh ut.    c 1060 O.E. Chron. (MS. C) an. 1055, Ær þær
wære æniᴁ spere ᴁescoten, ær fleah ðæt Englisce folc.    a 1225 Ancr. R. 60 Þerefter heo schekeð
hire spere, & nehlecheð up on hire, &‥ȝiueð speres wunden.    c 1275 Passion our Lord 179 in
O.E. Misc., Mid speres and myd staues and oþe vele þinge.    c 1320 Sir Tristr. 1446 Wiþ a spere
feloun He smot him in þe side.    a 1400 Sir Perc. 191 Off alle hir lordes faire gere Wolde scho
noȝte with hir bere, Bot a lyttille Scottes spere.    1470–85 Malory Arthur i. x. 48 Vlfyus and
Brastias dressid theire speres and ranne to gyder with grete raundon.    1483 Cath. Angl. 354/2 A
Sperre for a bayre, excipulum, venabulum.    a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 36 b, The Scottes
dayly shipped long speres called Colleyne Clowystes.    1590 Spenser F.Q. i. i. 11 The
Champion‥to the Dwarfe a while his needlesse spere he gaue.

β    c 1400 Destr. Troy 6494 Two speirus full dispitus he sparet to cast.    14‥ Trevisa's Barth.
De P.R. xvii. xxxi. (Bodl. MS.), Dartes of reede‥so longe‥þt þei vse hem in stede of speirs.
1562 Winȝet Wks. (S.T.S.) I. 78 That knycht quha peirsit our Lordis syde with the speir.    1596
Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. II. 330 The Scotis ouerthrew monie Jnglismen with speiris.

γ    1524 St. Papers Hen. VIII, II. 115 Englishe speares, bowes, and billes.    1560 J. Daus tr.
Sleidane's Comm. 130 The chief Prophet‥thrusteth his speare into hym.    1630 R. Johnson's
Kingd. & Commw. 109 Some after the fashion of Italie, using a Scull, a Iacke, a Sword, and two
light Speares.    1667 Milton P.L. i. 292 His Spear, to equal which the tallest Pine Hewn on
Norwegian hills‥were but a wand.    1756–7 tr. Keysler's Trav. (1760) IV. 403 The spears of
both these champions are still shewn here.    1813 Scott Trierm. i. xvii, Four of the train
combined to rear The terrors of Tintadgel's spear.    1889 Baden-Powell Pigsticking 90 The short
or ‘jobbing’ spear is generally used throughout Bengal and Upper India.

b.I.1.b Without article, freq. coupled with shield, sword, etc., and used in a collective sense.

   c 1205 Lay. 548 Brutus‥mid sweord & mid spere al he todrof þes kinges here.    a 1250 Owl &
Night. 1022 He myhte bet teche ane beore To bere scheld and spere.    a 1300 Cursor M. 20817
To be þan for vs sper and scheild.    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xviii. 12 Wyth-oute spores other spere
spakliche he loked.    c 1400 Rom. Rose 5823 That she‥nyl‥smyte a stroke in this bataile, With
darte, ne mace, spere, ne knyf.    c 1470 Henry Wallace iv. 302 All‥Off that party that mycht
weild bow or sper.    1500–20 Dunbar Poems liv. 16 Quhai for hir saik, with speir and scheld,
Preiffis maist mychtelye in the feld [etc.].    1595 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 116/2 With jak, knaipisca,
speir and suord.    1611 Bible Jer. vi. 23 They shall lay hold on bowe and speare.    1725 Pope
Odyssey x. 169, I climb'd a cliff, with spear and sword in hand.    1810 Scott Lady of L. v. xi,
And still, from copse and heather deep, Fancy saw spear and broadsword peep.    1849 Aytoun
Lays Scott. Caval. 70 Why go you forth‥With spear and belted brand?

†c.I.1.c Const. of (peace or war). spear of peace, a blunt spear used in jousting. Obs.

   a 1400 Sir Degrev. 1177 Tak ether of ȝow a spere, Bothe of pes and of were.    Ibid. 1261 To
gret sperus of pese Bothe these lordes hem chese.    1508 Kennedy Flyting w. Dunbar 545
Deulbere, thy spere of were, but feir, thou yelde.

†d.I.1.d The sharp head of a pike. Obs. rare.

   1690 Exercise of Foot 121 Trail your Pikes with the Spears behind.    Ibid. 144 The Pikemen
Charge their Pikes to the Front, the Spears in a Line Breast high.

e.I.1.e Mil. One of the transverse spikes or poles of a cheval-de-frise.

   1823 Crabb Technol. Dict.    1828 Spearman Brit. Gunner (ed. 2) 142 Weight, Dimension, &c.
of Chevaux-De-Frize.‥ Barrel, Length 9 ft. 5 in. Spears, 20. Length 6 ft.    1834–47 J. S.
Macaulay Field Fortif. (1851) 82 The spears of the chevaux-de-frise should be so arranged as to
present three rows of points to the enemy.    1876 Voyle & Stevenson Milit. Dict. (ed. 3) s.v.
Chevaux de frise, Each length is composed of a barrel or stout beam‥, with strong sharp spears
driven through it, in two or more different directions.

2. a.I.2.a In transf. and fig. uses.

   c 897 K. Ælfred Gregory's Past. C. xxxv. 244 Ða speru ðære soðfæstnesse, ðæt sindon haliᴁra
ᴁewrita manunga.    a 1300 Cursor M. 28046 O licheri agayn þe spere Wit chastite þou sal þe
were.    c 1470 Henry Wallace ii. 231 Compleyne for hym that was your aspre sper.    1500–20
Dunbar Poems lxxxiv. 40 Inconstance‥; Secreit invy, and of dispyt the speir.    1546 J.
Heywood Prov. (1867) 29 Will is a shrewde boy.‥ A gentle white spurre, and at neede a sure
speare.    1593 Shakes. Rich. II, i. i. 171, I am‥Pierc'd to the soule with slanders venom'd speare.
1820 Shelley Prometh. Unb. i. 31 The crawling glaciers pierce me with the spears Of their moon-
freezing crystals.    1873 M. Arnold Lit. & Dogma (1876) 328 The spear of Butler's reasoning.
1930 R. Campbell Adamastor 60 A starved mongrel‥From where he crouched, a thrilling spear
of pain, Hurled forth his Alleluia to the sky.    1934 T. S. Eliot Rock ii. 78 Encompassed with
enemies armed with the spears of mistaken ideals.

b.I.2.b The ‘sack’; dismissal. Austral. slang.

   1912 in Stewart & Keesing Old Bush Songs (1957) 273 I've been many years a shearer and I
fancied I could shear, I've shore for Rouse of Guntawung and always missed the spear.    1941
Baker Dict. Austral. Slang 69 Get the spear, to be dismissed from a job.

†3.I.3 In allusive phrases or uses. a.I.3.a under a spear, under one banner, pennon, or flag. Obs.—
1

   1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 11861 So þat þer were To & tuenti kniȝtes vnder a spere.

†b.I.3.b to sell at the spear, to put, etc., under the spear, to sell by auction. to pass under the spear,
to ‘come under the hammer’. Obs.
   After the common L. phrase sub hasta vendere.

   1600 Holland Livy ii. xvii. 55 The rest of the inhabitants were sold at the speare in ouvert
market like slaves.    Ibid. xxiii. xxxii. 496 Their fields he would lay wast; sell their servants in
port sale at the speare.    1611 B. Jonson Catiline ii. i, When you see‥that‥their Houses, and
fine Gardens [are] giuen away, And all their goods, vnder the Speare.    1689 Evelyn Let. to
Pepys 12 Aug. in E.'s Diary (1827) IV. 319 The noblest library that ever pass'd under the speare
at outcry.    1709 Mrs. Manley Secret Mem. (1736) IV. 96 They persuaded him to put all the
Furniture of the House immediately under the Spear.

†c.I.3.c stroke of the spear: (see quot. and feather n. 11 b).

   1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl. s.v., The feather of a horse, called the stroke of the spear, is a
mark in the neck, or near the shoulder, of some Barbs [etc.].

4. a.I.4.a A soldier armed with or carrying a spear; a spearman. Now arch.

   c 1205 Lay. 7453 Com of Muriene, moni spere kene.    a 1400 Sir Degrev. 319 The best mene
that he ledde, He hadd y-lefft home to wedde, With ffyffty spers is he ffledd.    c 1450 Contin.
Brut 580 One Watkyn Ruskyn, a gentill man and a gud spere, was slayn at þe wynnyng of þe
same bullewerk.    1475 Bk. Noblesse (Roxb.) 38 Ser John Chaundos,‥whiche had bene in many
batailes, and had the governaunce of Ml. speris.    a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 55 The Erle of
Huntyngdone,‥with twoo M. archers, and foure hundred speres, was sente into Gascoyne.    a 
1578 Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) II. 39, ijc speiris witht the earle of Angus and ijc
witht my lord governour.    1618 Bolton Florus (1636) 55 Caius Minutius, a speare in the fourth
Legion.    1820 Scott Monast. xxxv, That plump of spears that are spurring on so fast.    1885
Ruskin Pleas. Eng. 113 He sent‥for some German knights, and got five hundred spears.

†b.I.4.b (See quots. and pensioner 2.) Obs.

   1539 Cranmer Let. to Cromwell in Rem. (1833) I. 296 Edward Askew‥is by some nobleman
preferred unto the room of one of these new spears in the Court.    1540 Wriothesley Chron.
(Camden) I. 112 This yeare [1539] the kinge made many yong gentlemen speres, and gave them
5 l. a peece.    a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 6 Also this yere [1509], the kyng ordeined fiftie
Gentle menne to bee speres, euery of theim to haue an Archer, a Dimilaunce and a Custrell, and
euery Spere to haue three greate Horses.    Ibid. 237 b, In December [1539] were appointed to
wayte on the kynges hyghnes person fiftie Gentelmen called Pencioners or Speares, lyke as they
were in the first yere of the kyng.

c.I.4.c A hunter or sportsman who uses a spear; a pig-sticker.

   1849 E. B. Eastwick Dry Leaves 75 One of the best spears who ever chased the wild boar over
wide plain and tangled hill.    1863 Trevelyan Compet. Wallah (1866) 139 Mr. Mildred, an indigo
planter, a first-rate spear and rough-rider.

5. a.I.5.a A sharp-pointed weapon used for various purposes; esp. one for catching fish, a leister.
   Also with defining terms, as eel-spear, fish-spear, salmon-spear, trout-spear.

   1551– [see salmon n.1 4].    1555– [see eel-spear].    1611 [see fish n.1 6 b.].    a 1700 Evelyn
Diary 22 July 1654, Abounding in trouts catch'd by speare in the night.    1766 State of Proc., A.
Macdonald v. Dk. Gordon Pursuer's Proof 13 The fish‥were killed and taken out by spears.
1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) VI. 208 They renew their attacks, till the whale begins to be quite
enfeebled‥, when they plunge their longer spears into various parts of its body.    1815 Scott
Guy M. xxvi, This chase, in which the fish is pursued and struck with barbed spears,‥is much
practised at the mouth of the Esk.    1840 D. P. Blaine Encycl. Rural Sports §2889 The salmon is
also caught with a spear, which they dart into him as he swims near the surface of the water.

b.I.5.b A pointed iron bar. rare.

   1607 Dekker Jests G ij, If they haue‥taken note of any casement, without a speere going vp in
the middle.    Ibid. G ij b.

c.I.5.c A prong of a fork. (Cf. speer n.2)

   1739 Baker in Phil. Trans. XLI. 135 A Young Woman‥received a Wound just in the Pupil of
her right Eye, by the Spear of a common Fork.    1748 Aery Ibid. XLV. 412 She received a
Wound in the Cornea of her right Eye, by the Spear of a common Fork, which also divided the
Uvea.

6. a.I.6.a pl. The thorns or prickles of a plant, the spines or spikes of a hedgehog, sharp fins of a
fish, etc. Chiefly poet.; now rare.

   [1503 Dunbar Thistle & Rose 130 Vpone the awfull Thrissill scho beheld, And saw him kepit
with a busche of speiris.]    1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 279 The Hedghog rowleth vpon the
Serpent‥and killeth his aduersary, carrying the flesh vpon his speares.    1693 Dryden, etc.
Juvenal iv. (1697) 91 Mark the pointed spears That from thy Hand on his pierc'd Back he wears!
Note. He makes the Flatterer call the sharp Fins rising on the Fishes back, Spears.    1821 Clare
Vill. Ministr. II. 161 The very bramble, weeping 'Neath dewy tear-drops that its spears surround.
1827 ― Sheph. Cal. Feb. ix. 23 The hedgehog,‥As shepherd-dog his haunt espies,‥rolls up in
a ball of spears.

b.I.6.b The sting of a reptile or insect, esp. of a bee. Now Sussex dial.

   1608 Topsell Serpents 172 Nor yet he when [he] with his angry mouth Doth byte, such paines
and torments bringeth As other Serpents‥When with his teeth and speare he stingeth.    1609 C.
Butler Fem. Mon. A iij b, The speere she hath is but little and not halfe so long as the other Bees.
Ibid. A v b, Hir speere she [the bee] is very loth to vse, if by any other meanes she can shift hir
enimy.    a 1700 Ken Edmund Poet. Wks. 1721 II. 90 Into his tendrest Parts‥the pertinacious
Legion dart their spears.    1721 Bradley Philos. Acc. Wks. Nat. 149 Our Gnat, which is of the
unarmed Kind, having no Spear in its Mouth.    1875 Parish Sussex Dial., Spear, the sting of a
bee.    1889 Longman's Mag. July 269 The best thing‥when you have taken ‘the spear’ out, is to
rub the place with a leek.

7.I.7 A beam or ray of light.

   c 1850 Lowell Above & Below i. iii, 'Tis from these heights alone your eyes The advancing
spears of day can see.    1894 Hall Caine Manxman 277 A spear of candle-light shot from her
door.

II.II attrib. and Comb.

8.II.8 Simple attrib., in the sense ‘of or belonging to a spear’, as spear-blade, †spear-block, spear-
butt, †spear-pile (= shaft), spear-tip, etc.; also denoting distance or measurement, as spear-cast,
spear-length, spear-throw; and miscellaneous, as spear-arm, spear-forest, spear-print, spear-
storm, spear-stroke, spear surge, spear-thrust.

   1880 Browning Dram. Idylls, Echetlos 5 Up, back, out, down—was the *spear-arm play.

   1880 F. Witti Diary in J. Hatton New Ceylon iv. (1881) 99 To the one end of the blowpipe is
always made fast a *spear-blade.

   1543 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. VIII. 223 For certane *speir blokis boucht‥to his grace in
Ayr,‥xv li.

   1853 Kingsley Hypatia vi. 73 An obedience which the Roman soldiers could only have
compelled by hard blows of the *spear-butt.

   1865 Morris Jason x. 209 As in the stream they lay A *spear-cast from the shore.

   1946 S. Spender European Witness xiv. 217 A country of clustered *spear-forests and gloomy
heaths.
   13‥ Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 2316 He sprit forth spenne fote more þen a *spere lenþe.    c 1400 Destr.
Troy 3698 Hit spirit vp spitiously fyue speire lenght.    1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. i.
viii. 9 The ditch‥was only seuen fadomes broade, and twoo speare lengths deep.    1890 Doyle
White Company xxxvi, He fell within a spear-length of the English line.

   1638 R. Brathwait Psalmes Paraphr. cli, Six hundred iron shekels masse upon my *speare-pile
playes.

   1911 E. Pound Canzoni 4 Deep in my heart that *spear-print stays, That wound I got beyond
the waters.

   1848 Lytton K. Arthur iii. xlviii, May Harold, thus confronting all, Pass from the *spear-storm
to the Golden Hall.

   1835 Court Mag. VI. 35/2 The captive English,‥awaiting the *spear-stroke with unblenching
fortitude.

   1900 Chesterton Wild Knight & Other Poems 103 The crest of the *spear-surge.

   1884 J. Colborne Hicks Pasha 46 Their many-coloured *spear-tassels dropping on their

shoulders.

   1892 Rider Haggard Nada 28 The men were running‥with the length of a *spear-throw
between them.

   1825 Scott Talism. xxvi, With sword-cut and *spear-thrust all hack'd and pierced through.

   1930 T. S. Eliot tr. St.-J. Perse's Anabasis 43 The horsemen‥feeding on their *spear-tips the
pure disasters of sunshine.

   1857 Gosse Omphalos xii. 362 It falls to the ground before the *spear-touch of our Ithuriel.

   1895 Cath. Mag. Aug. 210 The *spear-wound in His side.

9.II.9 General combs. a.II.9.a With agent-nouns, as spear-bearer, spear-fisher, spear-fisherman,

spear-hurler, spear-planer.

   1449 in Sharp Cov. Myst. (1825) 193 Item, ij sperberrers‥ij d.    c 1515 Cocke Lorell's B. 10
Tankarde berers,‥and spere planers.    1876 G. W. Cox Gen. Hist. Greece ii. i. 103 His spear-
bearer Gyges.    1895 J. Menzies Cynewulf's Elene 25 The great spear-hurler, who the hosts to
battle led.    1951 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries of Australia ix. 309 Members will not‥seek
quarrels with line⁓fishermen or other spear-fishermen regarding priority rights of fishing at any
place.    1962 Underwater Swimming (‘Know the Game’ Ser.) 19/1 The spearfisherman should
always carry a knife.    Ibid., An added safety device is to have a float anchored in the diving area
to which the spearfisher can go to rest or leave his catch.    1982 Times 21 July 3/3 Dr Paul
Cragg, a biologist, was in favour of resuming grants for spearfishermen.
b.II.9.b With verbal ns. (objective or instrumental), as spear-bearing, spear-breaking, spear-
fishing (hence, as a back-formation, spear-fish vb. intr. and trans.), spear-pricking, etc.; also
similative, as spear-flashing.

   1861 Paley Æschylus (ed. 2) Pers. 149 note, Archers, or Persians, are again opposed to *spear-
bearing Greeks.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 265 *Spear-brandishing Polydamas came as an avenger.

   1823 Scott Quentin D. xxvi, I should otherwise have had *spear-breaking between you and my
cousin of Orleans.

   1962 Times 6 Apr. 7/2 Sail, snorkel, skin-dive, *spear⁓fish in tropical Florida.    1963
Harper's Bazaar Jan. 65/1 On the Côte d'Azur, many of the big fish have been‥spear-fished out
of sight.    1973 J. Jones Touch of Danger xix. 106, I spearfished.‥ Sonny‥was no adept with
flippers or speargun.

   1601 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 392/2 Lie cobill, curroch et *speir fischingis super aqua de Spey.
1945 Spear-fishing [see flipper n.2 1 b].    1960 M. A. Gabrielsen et al. Aquatics Handbk. xiv.
102/1 Spear fishing is becoming a popular competitive as well as recreational sport.    1973 J.
Jones Touch of Danger xix. 107 Sonny was against spearfishing for sport.

   1937 Blunden Elegy 78 Against high blue *Spear-flashing white the spire.

   1895 Sir H. Maxwell Duke Britain viii. 117 Forced by heavy blows and *spear-prickings to
resume progress.

   1865 Morris Jason vi. 485 *Spear-shaking warrior and slim-ankled maid.

   1895 K. Grahame Gold. Age 98 His *spear-splintering crash of tourney.

   1828 P. Cunningham N.S. Wales (ed. 3) II. 42 By means of their perpetual wars and the
practices of *spear-throwing, child-murder, and concubinage.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 26 *Spear-wielding auxiliaries from many cities.

c.II.9.c With past pples. (instrumental), as spear-bound, spear-fallen, spear-famed, spear-pierced,

spear-shaken, spear-stuck, spear-tipped, etc.

   1816 H. G. Knight Ilderim 280 The *spear-bound steeds that ready harness'd fed.

   1824 Symmons Agamemnon 104 The blood-drop‥from the *spear-fallen man Drips apace.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 42 These, *spear-famed Idomeneus commanded.

   1863 J. H. Newman Verses Var. Occas. 33 Faint shadows of the *spear-pierced side.
   1947 S. Spender Poems of Dedication iv. 56 Above the destroyed city reborn city‥Tower of
wings climbing *spear-shaken skies.

   1848 Buckley Iliad 43 He killed Mynetes and *spear-skilled Epistrophus.

   1943 D. Gascoyne Poems 1937–42 5 Whose are these hollow red-filmed eyes And
thorn⁓spiked head and *spear-stuck side?

   1870 Morris Earthly Par. III. iv. 364 In forefront of battle let him fall; Or‥on some foeman's
*spear-swept wall.

   1954 W. Faulkner Fable 132 The *spear-tipped iron fence beyond which the three sentries
flanked the blank door beneath the three morning-windy flags.

d.II.9.d With adjs., as spear-headed, spear-pointed, spear-straight, etc.

   1561 Burning St. Paul's ⁋2 (Camden), A long and a speare pointed flame of fier.    1598 Barret
Theor. Warres ii. i. 20 A speare-headed staffe, sharpe pointed with iron.    1753 Chambers' Cycl.
Suppl. s.v. Phaseolus, The American phaseolus, with a sinuated and spear-pointed leaf.    1777
Potter Æschylus (1779) I. 184 Sev'n chiefs of high command, In arms spear-proof, take their
appointed stand.    1846 Landor Exam. Shaks. Wks. II. 295 Rushes spear high.    1848 J. R.
Lowell Poems 2nd Ser. 69 A stem‥Standing spear-straight in the waist-deep moss.    1873 Spon
Workshop Rec. Ser. i. 59/2 No spear-pointed drill can be tempered hard enough not to break.
1919 J. Masefield Reynard the Fox ii. 107 With spear-straight stern.

e.II.9.e In some specific names, as spear-bill, spear-billed (grebe), spear-leaf, spear-nosed (bat).

   1827 Griffith tr. Cuvier II. 9 We may here add the Lunette,‥spear-nosed bat.    Ibid. V. 69
Phyllostoma Hastatum (Spear-leaf Phyllostome, or Javelin Bat).    1884 Coues N. Amer. Birds
793 Æchmophorus, Spear-bill [Index, Spear-billed] Grebes.

10. a.II.10.a Special combinations, as spear-axe, a spear with an axe-shaped head; spear-carrier, a
carrier of a spear, a spearman: used transf. as (a) orig. Theatr. slang, an actor with a walk-on part;
hence, an unimportant participant; (b) U.S. colloq., a proponent or ‘standard-bearer’ (cf.
spearhead 1 b); †spear-egg-shaped a., Bot. lanceolate-obovate; †spear-field, the field of battle;
†spear-foot (see quot.); spear gun, a type of weapon used in spearfishing which operates by firing
a detachable harpoon; also attrib.; hence spear-gunner; spear-hand, the hand with which a spear is
usually held, thrown, etc.; the right hand or side; spear-hook U.S., a kind of snap-hook or spring-
hook for taking fish (Cent. Dict.); spear-nail (see quot.); spear-play, exercise or fighting with
spears; spear-pyrites Min., a variety of marcasite or white iron pyrites; spear-running, jousting
with spears; now arch.; spear-side (after OE. on spere-healfe), the male line of descent; †spear
silver Sc., a form of military tax or levy; †spear-stick, a spiked walking-stick; spear tackle
Austral., an illegal tackle in rugby football in which a player is lifted and thrust to the ground
head first; hence as v. trans.; spear-thrower, an implement used to aid the throwing of a spear.

   1865 J. H. Ingraham Pillar of Fire xi. 129 The offensive weapons of the [Egyptian] army are
the‥*spear-axe [etc.].
   1960 New Yorker 13 Aug. 97/1 The ‘Quartet’ is full of characters who in one novel may seem
irritatingly superfluous *spear-carriers,‥but who in the ‘Quartet’ turn out to be members of a
literary repertory company.    1963 Times 20 May 12/5 Most of those spear-carriers not only
don't know where the United States is but they don't know where they are themselves.    1967
N.Y. Times 21 May 26/1 Dr. King had ‘emerged as the public spear⁓carrier of a civil
disobedience program’.    1976 Times 18 Mar. 10 In Wisconsin on the same day Representative
Morris Udall, the ‘liberal-progressive’ spear carrier, will have to win to stay in the race.    1981
N. Marsh Black Beech & Honeydew (rev. ed.) x. 215 The students‥would begin to accept the
enormous challenge of a Shakespeare play and their own real importance, if only as spear-
carriers, in doing so.    1982 Sunday Sun-Times (Chicago) 20 June 100/1 By the time Breakfast at
Wimbledon telecasts are beamed into the United States on Fourth of July weekend, American
tennis pros Davis, Dunk and Hardie will have vacated their present lodging and be long gone
from the venerable tournament that they graced momentarily as spear-carriers.

   1796 Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) I. 82 *Spear egg-shaped,‥shaped like a spear towards the
base, and like an egg towards its extremity.    Ibid. II. 474 Flower-scales spear-eggshaped, in
pairs.

   c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 1238 To speid thame our the *spere-feild enspringing thai sprent.

   1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl., *Spear-foot, of a horse, is the far⁓foot behind.

   1951 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries Austral. ix. 303 The sport of fishing with spears or
*spear-guns under water‥has had only a brief history.    Ibid. 304 Most Australian spear-gun
fishermen use a gun with rubber as the motive power.    1979 J. Leasor Love & Land Beyond i. 7
The‥five⁓pronged fork of an underwater spear gun.

   1951 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries Austral. ix. 308 Those responsible for such an attitude
know little of the *spear⁓gunner's activities.

   1728 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Hand, *Spear-Hand, or Sword-Hand, is used for a Horseman's Right-
Hand.    1824 Symmons Agamemnon 12 On the spear-hand and by the seat of state.

   1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 2255/2 *Spear-nail, one with a spear-shaped point.

   c 1640 J. Smyth Lives Berkeleys (1883) I. 325 Given to his Esquiers for to play at *Spearplay
at Bristoll, 26s 8d.    1885 C. J. Lyall Anc. Arab. Poet. 96 Steeds, in the spear-play skilled.    1894
Geogr. Jrnl. III. 479, I had the pleasure of witnessing a spear-play between two parties.

   1837 Dana Min. 405 White Iron Pyrites, Pyrites rhombicus.‥ *Spear Pyrites.    1865 Watts
Dict. Chem. III. 402 White Iron pyrites, Marcasite, Radiated pyrites, Spear pyrites.

   c 1550 Rolland Crt. Venus iv. 597 Than tuik thay in Iurnayis of Tornament, And *speir rinning,
with mony Interpryis.    1823 Scott Quentin D. xiv, At the spear-running of Strasbourg.
   1861 Pearson Early & Mid. Ages 122 In his [Alfred's] will he declares his intention of‥
leaving his land on the *spear-side.    1870 Lowell Study Wind. 246 Such and such qualities he
got from a grandfather on the spear side.

   1496 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. I. 324 To gadir in the *spere siluer of Perth, Forfare, and
Striuelinschire.

   1801 tr. Gabrielli's Myst. Husb. II. 135 His *spear stick, pelisse, &c. were at the Curate's.

   1969 Sun-Herald (Sydney) 13 July 36/2 Canterbury were penalised for a *spear tackle on
Cavanagh.    1977 Telegraph (Brisbane) 8 Nov. 3/3 He was injured after he was allegedly spear-
tackled.‥ A player is spear-tackled when an opponent tackles low, lifts the man with the ball
high, turns him over and thrusts him into the ground head first.    1871 Tylor Prim. Cult. I. 60 The
highest people known to have used the *spear-thrower proper are the Aztecs.

b.II.10.b In the names of plants, trees, etc., as spear arum, †crowfoot, -fern, -flower, -lily, -
(plume) thistle, -wood (see quots.).

   1845–50 A. H. Lincoln Lect. Bot. App. 220/1 *Spear arum, Rensselaeria.

   1597 Gerarde Herbal ii. ccclv. 815 Called‥in English *Speare Crowfoote, Spearewoort, and
Banewoort.

   1867 W. W. Smyth Coal & Coal-mining 37 The Odontopteris, or tooth-fern, and Lonchopteris,
or *spear-fern, are [fossil] genera which occur less frequently.

   1891 Cent. Dict., *Spear-flower, a tree or shrub of the large tropical and subtropical genus
Ardisia of the Myrsineæ.

   1889 J. H. Maiden Usef. Native Pl. 621 Doryanthes excelsa.‥ ‘*Spear Lily.’ ‘ Giant Lily.’

   1855 Miss Pratt Flower. Pl. III. 231 (*Spear Plume Thistle.) Heads of flowers large, mostly
solitary.

   1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl. s.v. Thistle, The broad-leaved *spear-Thistle.    1777 Jacob Cat.
Plants 19 Carduus lanceolatus, Spear-Thistle.    1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm III. 1066 The
biennial spear-thistle, Cnicus lanceolatus, the spines of which breaking in the flesh, give acute
pain when touched.    1872 H. Macmillan True Vine vii. 320 In the common spear-thistle, each
plant produces upwards of a hundred seed-vessels.

   1866 Treas. Bot. 1077/2 *Spearwood, Acacia doratoxylon.    1874 Ibid. Suppl. 1343/2
Spearwood, also Eucalyptus doratoxylon.

c.II.10.c In the names of fishes, as spear-beak, dog, -fish (see quots.).

   1896 Lydekker Roy. Nat. Hist. V. 507 The extinct Jurassic *spear-beaks (Aspidorhynchus)
constitute a second family.
   1848 Zoologist VI. 1975 Picked Dog, *Spear Dog, Spinax acanthias.

   1882 Jordan & Gilbert Syn. Fishes N. Amer. 119 Carpiodes cyprinus.‥ Quillback; *Spear-
fish; Sail-fish; Skimback.    Ibid. 420 Tetrapturus albidus, Bill-fish; Spear-fish.    1888 Goode
Amer. Fishes 241 In Cuba, the Spear-fishes are called ‘Aguja’.

spreōt
bt
spreōt, es; m. A pole, sprit (in bow-sprit):--Spreōt contus, Wrt. Voc. i. 33, 61. Ānes mannes lenge ðe healt
ānne spreōt on his hand and strecþ hine swā feor swā hē mæg ārǣcan intō ðere sǣ statura unius hominis
tenentis lignum quod Angle nominant spreot, et tendentis ante se quantum potest, Chart. Th. 318, 10.
Spreōtas trudes vel amites. Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 43: trudes (in a list of things connected with ships), 48, 13: 57,
16: 64, 7: ansatas, ii. 3, 68: contos, 14, 72. Spreōtum, spreūtum contis, Txts. 48, 211. [Prompt. Parv.
sprete contus: Du. spriet sprit: Dan. sprød: Swed. spröt.] v. eofor-spreōt.

bts
spreōt. Add :-- Spreōt palus, An. Ox. 30, 1. [v. N. E. D. sprit.]

ch

med
(a) A pole, pike, or staff; (b) a pole used for propelling a boat, a punting pole; ~ or ore, ore and
~; (c) a bowsprit; (d) naut. in cpds. and combs.: ~ seile, the sail set under the bowsprit; ~ yerd,
the yard slung under the bowsprit; bou ~, q.v.; long ~, a bowsprit; rof ~, a spare spar; (e) in place
name [see Smith PNElem. 2.140].

oed
sprit, n.1

(sprɪt)

Forms: α. 1, 4 spreot, 4–5 sprete, 7–9 spreet. β. 4, 7 spret, 5–7 sprett(e. γ. 5–6 spryt, sprytt, sprite
(7 spright), 5, 7–8 spritt, 6– sprit.

[OE. spréot, = MDu. (Du. and WFris.) spriet, MLG. spryet, spriet, (hence G. spriet) and spreet,
NFris. sprit, spret, ultimately related to sprote1 and sprout v.1]
1.1 A pole, esp. one used for propelling a boat; a punting-pole; †a spear.

   a c 725 Corpus Gloss. C 609 Contis, spreotum.    c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 143
Trudes, uel amites, spreotas.    1023 in Thorpe Charters 318 Anes mannes lenge þe healt anne
spreot on his hand and strecþ hine swa feor swa he mæᴁ aræcan into þere sæ.    13‥ St. Cristofer
300 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 458 A lang sprete he bare in hande To strenghe him in þe
water to stande.    13‥ K. Alis. 858 (Linc. MS.), Þe þrid day þey gan aryue, Þey swymmed wiþ
spreot,‥And bryngiþ schipes to þe lond.    c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 12653 Thei brende bothe mast
& wynlase, Sterne & stere, ore & spretes.    c 1440 Promp. Parv. 470/2 Sprete, or qvante,‥
contus.

β    c 1350 Will. Palerne 2754 Sone as þe schipmen seie him out lepen, hastili hent eche man a
spret or an ore.    a 1400 Octouian 601 A sprette ouyr the bord they caste.    1530 Palsgr. 274/2
Sprette for watermen, picq.    1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. xviii. v. 111 Antoninus‥set his
course against our State and Common-wealth, not (as they say) with spret nor oare, with
shooving, or haling,‥but even with spred and full sayle.    1687 Shadwell Tenth Sat. Juvenal 38
Contus signifies a Quant or Sprett, with which they shove Boats.

γ    c 1435 Torr. Portugal 181 Torrent undyr hys spryt [= spear] he sprent, And abowght the body
he hyme hente.    a 1450 Octavian 469 Some hente an oore,‥some a sprytt, The lyenas for to
meete.    1583 T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. iii. 126 b, This Arke‥was rowed neither with
sprites, nor ores,‥but [driven] by wheeles wrought within her.    1606 Holland Sueton. 116 A
number of mariners, who with their sprits, poles and oares should beate‥their carkasses.    a 
1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia 321 Sprit, a pole to push a boat forward.    1903 Longman's Mag. Jan.
216 You could not perceive when the flat bit of wood at the end of the sprit touched it [i.e. the
bottom of a mere].

2.2 Naut. a.2.a ‘A small boom or pole which crosses the sail of a boat diagonally from the mast to
the upper hindmost corner of the sail, which it is used to extend and elevate’ (Falconer).

   13‥ E.E. Allit. P. C. 104 Wiȝt at þe wyndas [they] weȝen her ankres, Sprude spak to þe sprete
þe spare bawe-lyne.    1399 Rolls of Parlt. III. 444/2 Par le rumper d'un cabel, rope, sprete, ou
mast d'ascun Shoute.    1417 in For. Acc. 8 Hen. V, G/1, j dialle, j Soundynglyne, j Roffe Sprite
in Balingera Regis.    1536 in Marsden Sel. Pl. Crt. Adm. (1894) I. 54 Possessione virge, Anglice
a yard or a spyryt [sic].    1716 Phil. Trans. XXIX. 497 This Machine I suspended from the Mast
of a Ship, by a Spritt which was sufficiently secured by Stays to the Mast-head.    1769 Falconer
Dict. Marine (1780) s.v., The lower end of the sprit rests in a sort of wreath or collar called the
snotter.    1856 Kane Arct. Expl. I. xxiv. 316 A stouter mainsail of fourteen-feet lift with a spreet
eighteen feet long.    1913 Act 2 & 3 Geo. V, c. 31 §39 A pilot flag‥to be placed at the mast
head, or on a sprit or staff.

b.2.b (See quot.)

   1846 Young Naut. Dict. 293 A Sprit, or Spur, in a sheer⁓hulk is a spar for keeping the sheers
out to the required distance.

3.3 attrib., as sprit pole, sprit rig, sprit staff, sprit topmast, sprit topsail, sprit yard.
   1485 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 49 Spritt yerds, j; Spritte sailes, j.    1497 Ibid. 300 Fore
yerdes, j; sprete yerdes, j.    1611 Cotgr., Miquelot,‥a poore, pettie, vagabond Pedler, that with a
spritstaffe crosses from place to place.    1627 Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. vii. 31 Your Spret
and Spret top-saile.    1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) s.v. Yard, Sprit-topsail yard equal to the
fore top gallant-yard.    1894 Outing XXIV. 84/2 The sprit rig cannot be said to be pretty.    1903
Longman's Mag. Jan. 216 Under the influence of the silent sprit-pole it seemed to move by some
voluntary self-contained power.

þeox
bt

þeox a spear :-- Īsenum bārsperum ł þioxum ferratis venabulis, Hpt. Gl. 423, 68. [Cf. (?) Thyxyl ascia,
Prompt. Parv. 491, and see note there. Thyxylle, Wrt. Voc. i. 234, 18. O. H. Ger. dehsa ascia; dehsīsen
confertorium; dehsala ascia, ferrum confertorium: Icel. þexla an adze.]

bts

ch

med

OED

þræc-wudu
bt
þræc-wudu, a; m. A spear :-- Helm, byrne, þræcwudu, Beo. Th. 2496; B. 1246.

bts

ch
med

oed

wæl-gār
bt
wæl-gār, es; m. A deadly spear :-- Wælgār slīteþ, Exon. Th. 354, 46; Reim. 61. Ðǣr wæs heard plega,
wælgāra wrixl, wīgcyrm micel, Cd. Th. 120, 5; Gen. 1990.

bts

ch

med

wal (n.(2)) Also wel, (early) wale, wæl(e.

[OE wæl, pl. walu.]

(a) A corpse, dead body;

(b) coll. those who have fallen in battle or have been massacred, the slain; ?also, the scene of a
bloody battle [1st quot.];

(c) slaughter, destruction, bloodshed; islen (ofslen) muchel ~, to bring about carnage, kill a huge
number;

(d) in cpds. and combs.: ~ kempe, a fierce fighter, mighty warrior; ~ kirie, q.v.; ~ slaughte [OE
wæl-sliht], bloody fighting, slaughter; ~ spere [OE wæl-spere], a deadly spear, a spear of
slaughter.

oed
† wal poet. Obs.

Forms: 1 {wæl}, 3 wæl(e, wal(e, wel.

[OE. wæl neut. = OS. wal- in waldâd murderous deed, OHG. wal neut., walu- (MHG. wal neut.,
masc., wale ? masc.), ON. val-r masc. (whence valkyrja Valkyrie):—OTeut. *walo- (? *walu-),
perh. cogn. w. L. volnus, vulnus wound.]
Death, slaughter. (In OE. also collect. the slain; rarely a slain person.)

   c 900 Bæda's Hist. iv. xv. (1890) 306 Mid grimme wæle & heriᴁe.    c 1205 Lay. 404 Þar aros
wale & win.    Ibid. 4111 Þat wæl wes þe more.

b.b Comb.: wal-kemp, a warrior; wal-slaught, deadly battle; wal-spear, a battle-spear.

   c 1205 Lay. 565 Antigonus‥mid his *wæl-kempen swenden toward Brutun.

   ? a 900 O.E. Chron. (Parker MS.) an. 839 Her wæs micel *wælsliht on Lundenne, and on
Cwantawic, and on Hrofesceastre.    c 1205 Lay. 1369 Þa Grickes hit biwnnan mid heora wæl
slahte.

   a 1000 Byrhtnoth 322 (Gr.) Oft he gar forlet, *wælspere windan on þa wicingas.    c 1205 Lay.
28577 Arður [wes] forwunded mid wal-spere brade.

wæl-sceaft
bt
wæl-sceaft, es; m. A deadly shaft, Beo. Th. 801; B. 398.

bts

ch

med

oed

wæl-spere
bt
wæl-spere, es; n. A battle-spear, spear with which slaughter is to be wrought :-- Oft hē gār forlēt,
wælspere windan on ða wīcingas, Byrht. Th. 141, 14; By. 322. Syx smiðas sǣtan wælspera worhtan,
Lchdm. iii. 52, 31. [Forwunded mid walspere brade, Laym. 28577.]
bts

ch

med

oed

wīg-gār
bt
wīg-gār, es; m. A lance :-- Wīgār lancea, wegures (w&i-longg&a-long;res?) gewriđ amentum, Wrt. Voc.
i. 35, 46 - 47. Cf. wīg-spere.

bts

ch

med

oed

wig-spere
bt
wig-spere, es; n. A war-spear :-- Wigspere falarica vel fala, Wrt. Voc. i. 35. 48.

bts

ch

med
oed

SWORD

beadu-leōma
bt
beadu-leōma, an; m. A war-gleam, sword; stragis flamma, ensis. v. beado-leōma.

bts

ch
beaduleoma m, (battle-light), sword, B1523

med

oed
† ˈbead-hook Obs.

Also 7 beedhook.

[Chiefly in Chapman: can he have formed it from OE. beadu battle, war? Cf. OE. {beadu}
wæpen weapon of battle, etc.]

? A kind of boat hook.

   1600 Chapman Iliad xv. 356 The Greeks with bead-hooks fought.    1614 ― Odyss. ix. 651 A
bead-hook then‥I snatch'd up.    1631 ― Cæsar & P. Plays 1873 III. 180 Yet beare halfe pikes
or bead-hookes.    1614 Raleigh Hist. World II. viii. iii. §18. 474 Corne, Iron, Canuas for Sailes,
Axes, Beede-hookes, Hand-milles.

beadu-mēce
bt beadu-mēce, es; m. A battle-sword, sword of slaughter; pugnæ ensis. v. beado-mēce.bts
bts

CH
beadumēce m, battle-sword, B1454.

MED

OED

bill
BT
BIL, bill, es; n. An old military weapon, with a hooked point, and an edge on the back, as well as within
the curve, a BILL or a broad two-edged sword, a falchion. Whatever its shape, it must have had two
edges; as, in the earliest poem, an envoy is attacked, billes ecgum, with the edges of a bill; falx, marra,
falcastrum, ensis curvus. Hitherto this word has only been found in poetry :-- Ðā ic, on morgne, gefrægn
mǣg ōðerne billes ecgum on bonan stælan then on the morrow, I have heard of the other kinsman setting
on the slayer with the edges of a bill, Beo. Th. 4963; B. 2485. Geseah ðā sige-eādig bil, eald sweord
eōtenisc then he saw a victorious bill, an old giant sword, Beo. Th. 3119; B. 1557. Abrægd mid ðȳ bille
he brandished with his sword, Cd. 142; Th. 177, 17; Gen. 2931. Billa ecgum with the edges of swords, Cd.
210; Th. 260, 14; Dan. 709. Billum abreōtan to destroy with swords, Cd. 153; Th. 190, 14; Exod. 199.
[Laym. bil a falchion: O. Sax. bil, n: Dut. bijl, f: Ger. beil, beihel, n: M. H. Ger. bīle, bīl, n: O. H. Ger.
bihal, bial, n: Sansk. bil to divide; findere.] DER. gūþ-bil, hilde-, stān-, twī-, wīg-, wudu-.

BTs
bil, bill. Dele Dut. and Ger. cognates, and add: [I. a falchion, v. Dict.] II. a bill, an implement for cutting
(wood, stone, weeds) :-- Sīðe vel bill falcastrum, Wrt. Voc. i. 16, 16: 34, 16. Bill bidubium (ferramentum
rusticum idem quod falcastrum, Migne), i. marra, ii. 12, 74: marra, 57, 70. Se hālga man [Benedict) āgeaf
þām Gotan þone gelōman (þæt bill, v. l.), and cwæð: 'Hēr is þīn bill (v. wudubill falcastrum, 113, 18), Gr.
D. 114, 17. Bill chalibem (cf. 92, 7, a gloss on Ald. 159, 33 where the incident of the preceding passage is
related), Wrt. Voc. ii. 20, 57. Hē sceal habban æcse, adsan, bil, Angl. ix. 263, 1. v. cweorn-bill; case-bill.

CH
bill n. 'bill,' chopper, battle-axe, falchion,
sword, B,WW.

MED

bil (n.) Pl. billes, beles.[OE bil(l; ME beles is blended with bile (1).]

A cutting, hacking, or grubbing implement: (a) a falchion, halberd, pike, gisarme; ~ ibeat; (b) a
pruning hook or blade; (c) a mattock, pickax, or hoe; (d) ~ hager (i.e. hakker), an offensive
fellow or cut-throat (lit., one who hacks with a blade).
OED
bill, n.1

(bɪl)

Forms: 1–7 bil, 5–6 byl, bylle, bille, 1– bill.

[Com. WGer.: OE. {bil}, billes neut., sword, falchion = OS. bil, the same, OHG. bill neut.
(MHG. bil neut., mod.G. bille fem., pickaxe) prob.:—OTeut. *biljo-(m (with WGer. ll for lj),
connected by some with Skr. bhil to split, cleave. Applied to various cutting weapons and
implements, the relations of which to each other are not satisfactorily ascertained. (Ger. beil,
OHG. bîhal, is an entirely different word.)]

†1.1 A weapon of war mentioned in OE. poetry, a kind of broadsword, a falchion. Obs. (Probably
passing with modified shape into sense 2.)

   a 1000 Beowulf 4126 Æfter billes bíte.    c 1050 Ags. Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker Voc. 376
Chalibem, bill.    1205 Lay. 1740 Þer wes bil ibeat ‹revsc› þer wes balu muchel.    [1867 Freeman
Norm. Conq. (1876) I. v. 273 note, The bill here [in Death of Brihtnoth] spoken of was a sword
and not an axe.]

2.2 An obsolete military weapon used chiefly by infantry; varying in form from a simple concave
blade with a long wooden handle, to a kind of concave axe with a spike at the back and its shaft
terminating in a spear-head; a halberd.
   Distinct forms of bills seem to have been painted or varnished in different colours; hence the
black bill and brown bills of the 16th and 17th centuries.

   c 1300 K. Alis. 1624 With longe billes‥They carve heore bones.    1465 Marg. Paston Lett.
518 II. 215 The tenauntes‥havyng rusty polexis and byllys.    1495 Act 11 Hen. VII, lxiv.
Pream., Armours Defensives, as‥Bowes, Billes, Hauberts.    1593 Shakes. Rich. II, iii. ii. 118
Distaffe-Women manage rustie Bills.    1598 Barret Theor. Warres i. i. 2 Inveterate opinion‥
touching blacke bils and bowes.    1603 Drayton Bar. Warres ii. xxxvii, Wer't with the Speare, or
Browne Bill, or the Pike.    1813 Scott Trierm. i. xiii, When the Gothic gateway frown'd, Glanced
neither bill nor bow.    1834 J. R. Planché Brit. Costume. 33.

b.2.b A similar weapon used by constables of the watch till late in the 18th cent. Also attrib.

   1589 Pappe w. Hatchet (1844) 28 All weapons from the taylors bodkin, to the watchmans
browne bil.    1599 Shakes. Much Ado iii. iii. 44 Haue a care that your bills be not stolne.    1616
Fletcher Cust. Country ii. i. 9, 1. Off. He was still in quarrels, scorned us Peace-makes, And all
our bill-authority.    1799 S. Freeman Town Off. 176 Every watchman carries a staff with a bill
fastened thereon.

3.3 Short for bill-man.

   1495 Hen. VII. in Ellis Orig. Lett. i. 11. I. 21 For‥an archer or bille on horsback viijd. by the
day.    1513 Hen. VIII. in Strype Eccl. Mem. I. ii. App. i. 4 A hundred able men‥wherof
threescore to be archers and forty bills on foot.    1532 G. Hervet Xenophon's Househ. (1768) 35
Billes, and archers, the which folowe their capitaynes in good arraye.    1825 Scott Talism. x, A
strong guard of bills and bows.

4.4 An implement used for pruning, cutting wood, lopping trees, hedges, etc., having a long blade
with a concave edge, often ending in a sharp hook (cf. bill-hook), and a wooden handle in line
with the blade, which may be long as in the hedging-bill, or short as in the hand-bill. (The form
of the ‘bill’ varies greatly in different localities.)

   c 1000 Ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker Voc. 106 Falcastrum, siþe, uel bill.    1481 Caxton
Reynard xxxiii. §1 The men‥cam out with stauys and byllis, with flaylis and pyk⁓forkes.
1552 Huloet, Byl called a forest bil, or bushsithe.    1570 Wills & Inv. N.C. (1835) 334 Ij paire of
wood skeles, one bilstaffe iiijs.    a 1604 Hanmer Chron. Irel. (1633) 103 Having a forrest Bill on
his shoulders.    1643 W. Greenhill Axe at Root 19 It is not Falx, a Bill or Hooke, to chop off
some Armes or Bowes.    1740 Somerville Hobbinol ii. 80 And with his crooked Bill Cut sheer
the frail Support.    1862 Trench Monk & Bird xxxiii. Poems 28 The woodman's glittering bill.

†5.5 A digging implement; a mattock or pickaxe.

   [c 1050 Ags. Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker Voc. 361 Bidubium, marra, bill.]    c 1325 Pol. Songs
(1839) 151 Thah y sulle mi bil ant my borstax.    c 1400 Ywaine & Gaw. 3223 Thai had broght
bath bill and spade.    1468 Medulla Gram., Fossorium, a byl or a pykeys.    1483 Cath. Angl. 31
A Bille (a Byll or a pycoss), fossorium, ligo.

6.6 Comb. †bill-hager (?); billman, q.v.

   c 1460 Towneley Myst. 85 Both bosters and bragers God kepe us fro‥From alle bylle hagers
with colknyfes that go.

BRAND
BT
BRAND, brond, es; m. I. a BRAND, fire-brand, torch; titio, torris :-- Brand titio vel torris, Ælfc. Gl. 30;
Som. 61, 76; Wrt. Voc. 27, 6. Brand titio, Wrt. Voc. 82, 55: Glos. Epnl. Recd. 163, 42. Bǣron brandas on
bryne blācan fȳres they bare fire-brands into the burning of the bright flame, Cd. 186; Th. 231, 12; Dan.
246. Se ād wæs ǣghwonan ymbboren UNCERTAIN mid brondum the funeral pile was heaped around on
every side with fire-brands, Exon. 74 a ; Th. 277, 15 ; Jul. 581. II. a burning, flame, fire; incendium,
flamma, ignis :-- Brond þeceþ hūs the burning covers the house, Exon. 59 a; Th. 212, 27; Ph. 216. Hæfde
landwara lige befangen, bǣle and bronde he had enveloped the land-inhabitants in flame, with fire and
burning, Beo. Th. 4633; B. 2322. Reōteþ meōwle, seō hyre bearn gesihþ brondas þeccan the woman
weeps, who sees the flames covering her child, Exon. 87 b; Th. 330, 7; Vy. 47. Ða beāgas sceal brond
fretan fire shall consume the rings, Beo. Th. 6021; B. 3014: Exon. 18 b; Th. 51, 7; Cri. 812. He his sylfes
ðǣr bān gebringeþ, ða ǣr brondes wylm on beorhstede forþylmde it [the Phœnix] brings its own bones
there, which the fire's rage had before encompassed on the mound, Exon. 60 a; Th. 217, 21; Ph. 283. Ða
fȳnd þoliaþ belle to-middes brand and brāde līgas the fiends suffer fire and broad flames in the midst of
hell, Cd. 18; Th. 21, 16; Gen. 325. Hȳ hine ne mōston bronde forbærnan they could not consume him with
fire, Beo. Th. 4258; B. 2126. Brondas lācaþ on ðam deōpan dæge fires shall flare on that awful day, Exon.
116 b; Th. 448, 23; Dom. 58. Bronda of fires. Beo. Th. 6302; B. 3161: Exon. 116 a; Th. 445, 25 ; Dom.
13. Bronda beorhtost brightest of fires or lights, the sun, 93 b; Th. 350, 170 ; Sch. 65. III. metaphorically
from its shining, A sword [hence the Eng. to BRANDISH]; ensis :-- Ic gean Eādmunde mīnum [minon
MS.] brēðer ānes brandes I give to Edmund my brother one sword, Th. Diplm. 559, 24. Ðæt hine nō brond
ne beadomēcas bitan ne meahton that no sword nor battle-falchions might bite it, Beo. Th. 2912; B. 1454.
[Chauc. bronde a torch: Laym. brond, brand a sword: Plat. brand, m: Frs. brān, c. gladius: O. Frs. brond,
brand, m. a fire-brand: Dut. brand, m. a burning, fire: Ger. brand, m. titio, torris, ensis: M. H. Ger. brant,
m: O. H. Ger. brant, m. titio, torris: Dan. brand, m. f: Swed. brand, m. a fire-brand, fire: Icel. brandr, m.I.
a brand, fire-brand; II. the blade of a sword.

BTs

CH
brand (ō) m. fire, flame, B;Æ : 'brand,'
torch, JnL,Da; Æ : sword, B.

MED

4.

(a) A sword; also, a blade; (b) ~ egge, edge of a sword; ~ wirchte, swordmaker.

OED
II. 8.II.8 The blade of a sword or similar weapon, and hence (like ‘blade’) the sword itself. [So
also in Icel. and in later times in OF. and MHG. brant: possibly from its flashing in the light.]
†a.II.8.a Blade, weapon. Obs. (exc. as in b).

   c 1050 Will of Æthelstan Æth. in Thorpe Dipl. 559 Ic ᴁean Eadmunde minon breðer þæs
swurdes þe Offa cyng ahte‥and anes brandes.    c 1380 Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 26 A swerd or
a knyf‥Thei myȝten‥wiþdrawe þes brondis þat þus done harme.

b.II.8.b A sword. (Cf. the poetical use of ‘blade’.) A poetical use, though in the present century
writers of romance have used it in prose as an archaism.

   a 1000 Beowulf 2912 Hine syððan no brond ne beadomecas bitan ne meahton.    c 1205 Lay.
15239 He scal leosen þa hond þurh his aȝene brand.    c 1340 Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1584 Braydez out
a bryȝt bront, & bigly forth strydez.    c 1400 Destr. Troy 7926 And I thi bane for to be with my
brond egge.    c 1440 York Myst. xxix. 142 Yone boy with a brande Brayede me full nere.    a 
1541 Wyatt Psalm xxxvii. 14 They have unsheathed eke their bloody bronds.    1667 Milton P.L.
xii. 643 Th' Eastern side‥Of Paradise‥Wav'd over by that flaming Brand.    1718 Pope Iliad v.
105 On his broad shoulder fell the forceful brand.    1820 Scott Abbot iii, There ne'er was
gentleman but who belted him with the brand.    1873 Symonds Grk. Poets v. 124 My wealth's a
burly spear and brand.
9.II.9 attrib. (sense 6) and Comb., as brand-image, the impression of a product in the minds of
potential users or consumers; also transf. and fig., the general or popular conception of some
person or thing; brand-name, a trade or proprietary name; also transf.

   1958 M. Mayer Madison Avenue U.S.A. iii. 59 David Ogilvy, of Ogilvy, Benson & Mather,
apostle of the ‘brand image’.    Ibid. iii. 63 Ogilvy's brand-image advertising‥works essentially
on the consumer's conscious mind in an effort to convince him that brand A, technically identical
with brand B, is somehow a better product.    1959 News Chron. 14 July 4/6 In the jargon of the
P.R. trade, there is as yet no ‘brand image’ for the Prime Minister of Japan.    1960 K. Amis New
Maps of Hell ii. 45 Space-opera with a full complement of BEMs and a small staff of mad
scientists attended by scantily clad daughters constitutes‥the main brand-image of science
fiction.

   1961 Guardian 27 May 6/2 Methods‥used to determine brand loyalty among smokers.

   1922 Hotel World 25 Mar. 9 (heading) Brand names on menus?    1950 A. H. Sayer et al.
Economics in our Democracy iv. xiii. 99 Each package has a brand name, which identifies the
product as having been made by a certain manufacturer.    1952 E. Partridge From Sanskrit 49
The association existed long before any Scotch whisky received the brand-name the real Mackay.
1958 Spectator 27 June 836/2 The brand-name wrapped loaf.    1960 20th Cent. Sept. 234 Mr.
Wesker's enemies dismiss him as a mere brand-name oversold by the theatrical Left.

gūþbill
BT
BT gūþ-bil, -bill, es; n. A war-bill, a sword, Beo. Th. 5162; B. 2584: 1610; B. 803.

BTS

CH

MED

OED

gūþsweord
BT
gūþ-sweord, es; n. A sword, Beo. Th. 4314; B. 2154.

Bts

CH
gūðsweord n. sword, B2154.
MED

OED

gūþwine
BT

BTS

CH
battle-friend, weapon

MED

OED

hæftmēce
bt
hæft-mēce, es; m. A hilted sword, Beo. Th 2918; B. 1457.

bts

CH
hæftmēce m. hilled sword, B 1457
MED

OED

hamera-lāf
BT

CH

MED

OED

Heoru
BT
heoru, heoro, hioro; m. A sword, Beo. Th. 2574; B. 1285: Exon. 92 a; Th. 346; 10; Gn. Ex. 202. The word
is a poetical one both in English and Icelandic, and in these dialects, as in Old Saxon, is mostly used in
compounds, [Goth. hairus: O. Sax. heru (in compounds only): Icel. hjörr.]

BTs

CH
heoru† in. sword.

MED

OED

heoruwǣpen
bt
heoru-wǣpen, es; n. A weapon of war, a sword, Judth. 12; Thw. 25, 16; Jud. 263.

bts

CH
heoruwǽpen n. sword, JUD263.
MED

OED

hildebil
BT
hilde-bil, -bill, es; n. Battle-blade, sword, Beo. Th. 3337; B. 1666: 1118; B. 557: 3044; B. 1520: 5351; B.
2679.

BTS

CH
hildeblll† n. sword.

MED

OED

hildeleōma
BT
hilde-leōma, an; m. A hostile, warlike ray, Beo. Th. 2291; B. 1143 [a sword]: 5159; B. 2583.

BTS

CH
hildelēoma† m. Gleam of cattle (name of a
sword), B.

MED

OED

hildemēce
BT
hilde-mēce, es; m. A war-falchion, Beo. Th. 4411; B. 2202.

BTS

CH
hildemēce m. sword, B2202.
MED

OED

hilting
BT
hilting a sword :-- Mēce, hiltinge macheram, i. gladium, An. Ox. 758.

BTS

CH
hilling m. sword, OEG758.

MED

OED

hiltsweord
BT

BTS

CH

MED

OED

ĪSEN
BT
ĪSEN, es ; n. Iron, steel, an implement made of iron :-- Īsen ferrum, Wrt. Voc. 85, 13 : Ælfc. Gr. 5 ; Som.
4, 58. Ðis ȳsen hic calibs, 9 ; Som. 13, 18. Eorþe swilce īsen terra ferrea, Deut. 28, 23. Ðā wæs se ofen
onhǣted īsen eall þurhglēded then was the furnace heated, the iron made red hot, Cd. 186; Th. 231, 8;
Dan. 244. Īsenes scearpnyss acumen, Ælfc. Gr. 9; Som. 9, 31. Gemeng tōgædere mid glōwende īsene mix
together with a glowing iron, L. M. 2, 24; Lchdm. ii. 216, 1. Ne delfe nān man ða moran mid īsene let no
man dig up the roots with iron, Lchdm. iii. 30, 24. Būtan ǣlcan īsene genumen gathered without using
any iron implement, Lchdm. iii. 4, 29 [cf. Grmm. D. M. 1148, sqq. as to the use of iron in getting plants].
The two following passages refer to the ordeal [v. īsen-ordāl] by hot iron :-- Gif hē hine lādian wille
ðonne gā hē tō ðam hātum īsene and lādige ða hand mid ðe man tȳhþ if he be willing to clear himself, then
let him go to the hot iron, and clear the hand therewith that is accused, L. Ath. i. 14; Th. 206, 23. Ǣlc
tiōnd āge geweald swā hwæðer hē wille swā wæter swā īsen, L. Eth. iii. 6 ; Th. i. 296, 4. Ācele ðū wealhāt
īsen ðonne hit furþum sīe of fȳre ātogen cool very hot iron when it is just drawn from the fire, L. M. 2,
45 ; Lchdm. ii. 256, 15. [Ayenb. izen (but the general form in middle English is that with r) : O. H. Ger.
īsen : Ger. eisen,] v. īren, īsern ; brand-, delf-, gād-, ordāl-īsen.

BTS
īsen; n. Add: I. iron :-- Glād hit on þǣm scyllum swelce hit wǣre smēðe īsen, Ors. 4, 6; S. 174, 8.
Grǣghǣwe īsene ferrugine, Wrt. Voc. ii. 35, 34. Gewyrme mid hāte glōwende īsene, Lch. ii. 236, 32 :
218, 24. Hiē him wǣpeno worhton þā þe īsen hæfdon, Ors. 4, 13 ; S. 210, 25. II. an implement, a tool, &
c. , made of iron :-- Þā rǣsde forð þæt īsen (īren, v. l. ferrum head of a hatchet) of þām hylfe, Gr. D. 113,
26. Aðamans mon mid nāne īsene ceorfan ne mæg, Past. 271, 3. Ðæt īsen ðæt hiē men mid lācnian
sculdon, 364, 10. Hē teāh  īsen (cf. þās hringan, 66) ūp, Hml. S. 21, 69. Hēt se kyning lecgan hāte īsena
under his nacodum fōtum, ac arn wæter ūp and cēlde þā īsena, 36, 392. v. bærn-, brǣd-, ceorfing-, mearc-,
mynet-, screādung-, snid-īsen.

CH
īsen I. (īsern, Iren) n. 'iron,' Æ,BH,CP,Gl, LL : iron instrument, Led : fetter, Ps : (†) iron
weapon, sword, B : ordeal of red-hoi iron, LL230[6]. [Ger. eisen] II. adj. ofirore, 'iron,'
Æ,B,Bl,CP,Da.

MED
iren (n.) Also hiren, jrenne, ieren, iron, hiron, jron, ir(o)un, irn(e, hirn(e, jrne, iern(e, yirn,
ir(e, hire, jre, irre & isen, hisen, izen, is(e, isern, aiser & eren, heren, yeren, eiren, heiron,
ern(e, herne, yern(e, 3ern, eire & (error) orn; pl. ir(e)nes, etc. & irnesse, hirenesse, isnes,
(early) irenu.

1a.

(a) Iron, as ore, metal, or commodity; of ~, made of iron or consisting of iron parts; (b) a piece
of iron; (c) filinge (limature) of ~, iron filings; filth (rust) of ~, iron rust; scurf (sinder) of ~, the
slag of iron separated from the ore during smelting, scoria; squame of ~, ?scales of iron rust;
water of ~, ?a liquid preparation containing iron in some form; ?the water in which hot iron is
quenched; (d) in sayings.

(a)  ?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   4129:  Þatt cnif wass..nohht off irenn.  c1225(?c1200) St.Marg.(1)

(Bod 34)   20/25:  His [a fiend's] grisliche teð semden of swart irn.  c1230(?a1200) Ancr.(Corp-
C 402)   216/18:  Irn þet lið stille gedereð sone rust.  a1250 Ancr.(Nero A.14)   128/4:  Nis ðet
iren acursed ðet iwurðeð þe swarture & ðe ruhure so hit is ofture & more iviled?  c1300
SLeg.Kath.(LdMisc 108)   245:  Heo nomen þe kene crokes of Ire Þat hire flechs depe
gnowe.  a1325(c1250) Gen.& Ex.(Corp-C 444)   467:  Of irin, of golde, siluer, and bras, To
sundren and mengen wis he was.  a1325(?c1300) NPass.(Cmb Gg.1.1)   1392:  A brac þe ire on
þe stidie, A brac it in pecis þre.  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   17:  Englode [read:
Englonde] is vol..Of stel, of yre, & of bras.  (1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   139/32:  Mildenesse..is þe
dyamod of noble kende þet nele na3t sitte ine gold ac ine poure metal ase yzen.  (a1382)
WBible(1) (Bod 959)   Deut.8.9:  Þe lord..shal lede þe into a good lond..whoos stonys been
yrun.  (a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   1.251:  Þe Grees write first yn wex with poynteles of
yren [L stylis ferreis].  (1397) Inquis.Miscel.(PRO)   6.74:  [Iron called] Spaynissh irne [and]
osmond [worth 20 £.].  (a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)   200a/a:  Iren hatte ferrum and haþ
þat name..of feriendo, smytynge, for it beteþ and smyteþ by hardnesse þerof..it is most hard and
sadde and..it tempereþ alle oþre metall, [etc.].  c1400(?a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)  
5140:  [They] Armen hem in breny of yse [rime: wise].  (1404) Will York in Sur.Soc.4   331:  j
cultellum de ayser.  (1419) *Will Bury   155:  A fryyng panne of eryn.  (1424) EEWills  
57/27:  Þan wul I þat my..wyfe..haue..my..brasse spytes, rakkes, and brandernes of erne.  a1425
*Medulla (Stnh A.1.10)   39a/b:  Magnes: a ston drawynge hyren.  c1436 Ipswich Domesday(2)
(Add 25011)   191:  Of eche ml. of yryn of Spayne, iiij d..Of eche ml. of yryn of Normandye, iiij
d.  (1439) Doc.in Dugdale Monasticon 4   554:  We ordene..that there be made a hache of
conabyll heythe, crestyd withe pykys of herne.  (1443) Acc.St.Mary Thame in BBOAJ 8  
30:  And for ij krompys of yr to ber the pypys to tomas smyghth.  1447 Bokenham Sts.(Arun
327)   7104:  Þe serclys..Shul wyth hookys of yirn..Be thyk set.  a1450(c1400) Wor.Serm.(Wor
F.10)   76/850:  Þow..vois wer as strong & as durable as any orn 3it..a schuld nat be suffisaunt to
telle al þe peynes tat ben in helle.  a1450 St.Editha (Fst B.3)   4396:  In strong preson he was þer
putte & gret gyus of hyrone y-leyde hym vpone.  a1450-a1500(1436) Libel EP (Warner)  
56:  Commodytes called commynge oute of Spayne And marchandy..Bene fygues, raysyns..Iren,
wolle.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   9133:  The teris þat trickilt on her tryet chekes,
As pure watur pouret vn polishet yerin.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)  
10463:  Þai..Barrit hom..with boltes of yerne.  c1450(c1400) Vices & V.(2) (Hnt HM 147)  
202/32:  Tribulacions purgeþ þe soule..as þe file doþ þe ieren.  (1463) GRed Bk.Bristol  
pt.2.p.66:  That euery estraunger alyen..pay..For every C Iron, ij d.  (a1470) Malory Wks.(Win-
C)   203/4:  He..caughte a clubbe in his honde all of clene iron.  c1475 Mankind (Folg V.a.354)  
280:  Lyke as þe smyth trieth ern in þe feer, So was he triede by Godis vysytacyon.  c1475
*Mondeville (Wel 564)   163a/b:  A smal naile of yrn mowe be putt yn.  a1500(?a1400) Torrent
(Chet 8009)   2136:  In the havyn of Portyngale, There stode shippes of hede vale Of Irun and of
tree.  a1500(a1415) Mirk Fest.(GoughETop 4)   238/9:  Then þe fende aperyd..wyth een
brennyng as doþe yern yn þe fyre sparklyng on yche syde.  a1500(?a1450) GRom.(Hrl 7333)  
312:  Þei..bond him in þe prison with bondis of yre.  a1500 Hrl.2378 Recipes (Hrl 2378)  
121/16:  Draw it on a hoke of eren.  

(b)  a1400(c1303) Mannyng HS (Hrl 1701)   1448:  Y sagh hym bere vppon hys krowne
Brynnyng eryn.  c1450(c1440) Scrope Othea (StJ-C H.5)   94:  A men [read: man] may not
ioyne oon yren to anothir yf thei be note hote bothe..and softyd with the fire.  c1450 Med.Bk.(2)
(Add 33996)   89:  Take a drope wyþ þe sklyce..on acolde yren or on acolde stoon.  

(c)  a1400 Lanfranc (Ashm 1396)   99/3:  Medicyns whiche þat ben driynge & clensynge, & han
a priuy propirte to consowde olde woundis..ben: limature [L limatura] of iren, flour of bras brent,
[etc.].  ?a1425 *Chauliac(1) (NY 12)   178a/b marg.:  Filth of yren, Merda ferri is knowen it is
fri. & sic..consolidatif.  ?a1425 *MS Htrn.95 (Htrn 95)   109a/b:  Hele it with þe squame of iren
& vineger, þe whiche is made in þis maner. Take þe ruste oþer þe redenesse of iren & grynde it
wele, [etc.].  ?a1425 *MS Htrn.95 (Htrn 95)   183a/a:  Hete a gobet of a mylne stone in þe fire
oþer of sinder of iren, [etc.].  ?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris angl.25)   85a/b:  Medecynes..þat
dryen..ben scurfe of bras..scurfe of yren.  ?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris angl.25)   97a/b:  Þat he
vse þinges þat ben delitable..as ben..grete soure wyne & water of yren.  ?c1450 Stockh.PRecipes
(Stockh 10.90)   34/27:  Take fylynge of syluyr, or erne, of leed, [etc.].  c1475(1392) *MS
Wel.564 (Wel 564)   118a/a:  Medicyns whiche þat ben boþe driynge and clensinge
and..consouden olde woundis..ben þese: The lymature of bras, þe lymature of yren.  

(d)  (c1390) Chaucer CT.Mel.(Manly-Rickert)   B.2226:  Whil that iren is hoot, men sholde

smyte.  c1425(a1420) Lydg. TB (Aug A.4)   2.6110:  Þe Iren hoot, tyme is for to smyte, And nat
abide til þat it be colde.  a1425(c1385) Chaucer TC (Benson-Robinson)  
2.1276:  Pandare..Felte iren hoot, and he bygan to smyte.  c1475(?c1451) Bk.Noblesse (Roy
18.B.22)   6:  Now at erst the irnesse be brennyng hote in the fire thoroughe goode courage, the
worke is overmoche kindelid and begonne.  

1b.

Alch. Iron as the metal of the planet Mars.

(a1393) Gower CA (Frf 3)   4.2470:  Iren..stant upon Mart; The Led after Satorne
groweth.  (c1395) Chaucer CT.CY.(Manly-Rickert)   G.827:  Sol gold is, and Luna siluer we
threpe, Mars iren.  c1450(c1380) Chaucer HF (Benson-Robinson)   1446:  Yren Martes metal
ys.  

2.

(a) A craftsman's tool or an agricultural implement made of iron or having iron parts;
gravinge ~, grosing ~, paringe ~, plough ~, soudinge ~, turninge ~, q.v.; (b) a branding iron;
also fig.; brenning ~, markinge ~, q.v.; (c) ?a stylus of iron for inscribing or engraving; a drill
for boring holes; (d) the heated iron bar or blade used in trials by ordeal; hot (firi) ~; -- also
coll.; (e) an iron hook, a nail, a spike; coll. iron nails, clamps for fastening, etc.; also, spikes on an
instrument of torture; (f) coll. iron bands for binding a chest, strengthening a door, wrapping an
ax handle, etc.; iron bars for a window; (g) a die used in minting of coins; (h) one of a pair of iron
grills for baking wafers and the like; a grill for roasting; baking irnes, houselinge irnes, oble
irnes, rost (rostinge) ~, q.v.; (i) the metal part of any tool, gear, or machine; an iron collar as part
of an instrument of torture; the bit of a bridle; bridel ~, miln ~, shovele ~, spade ~, q.v.

(a)  c1150(OE) Hrl.HApul.(Hrl 6258B)   75.20/1:  Þu scealt hy [betony] niman on augustus

monðe butan yserne.  c1150(OE) Hrl.HApul.(Hrl 6258B)   102.67/1:  Þu scealt onbute hy
delfan, swa þat þu hyra mid þan ysene na athryne.  a1325(c1250) Gen.& Ex.(Corp-C 444)  
2452:  Ebrisse folc adden an kire Nogt sone deluen it [the corpse] wið yre.  (1340) Ayenb.(Arun
57)   167/20:  Moche þoleþ þe coupe of gold of strokes of yzen erþan hi by yzet ope þet bord of
þe kinge.  (a1382) WBible(1) (Bod 959)   Lev.1.17:  He shal breke þe wynges of hit & not kytte
ne wiþ yryn dyuyde hit.  (a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   1.13:  I fare as the whetston þat
makeþ yren [Higd.(2): a knyfe] sharpe and kene.  (a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   4.351:  [St.
James] drank nevere wyn..eyren [vrr. yre, yren; L ferrum] come nevere on his heede.  (c1390)
Chaucer CT.Mil.(Manly-Rickert)   A.3809:  He was redy with his iren hoot, And Nicholas in
the ers he smoot.  (c1395) Chaucer CT.WB.(Manly-Rickert)   D.906:  Be war and keep thy
nekke boon from iren.  a1400(c1303) Mannyng HS (Hrl 1701)   9336:  3yf þou turnedest, for
worldes wynnyng..Tymber, stones, eren, or glas..vestyment..vesselement Þat falleþ to holy
cherches seruyse, And vsest hem on ouþer wyse..þou synnest.  (?1440) Palladius (DukeH d.2)  
1.136:  Thyn yrons keep in hard & sharp vsage ffor graffyng & for kittynge.  a1450(a1400)
SLeg.Corp.Chr.(Bod 779)   196:  Þe yrin gan to flete anon in þat stede.  (a1460) Vegetius(2)
(Pmb-C 243)   1504:  A turf it is, when gras & herbe is grave Vp with the grounde, with irons
mad therfore.  a1500 Agnus Castus (Bal 329)   203/20:  Yf he [the plant] be broke vp with-owte
any jre or othyr metell, and a man haue grete ache, [etc.].  

(b)  ?a1425(c1380) Chaucer Bo.(Benson-Robinson)   1.pr.4.138:  He comandide that..men

scholde marken hem on the forheved with an hoot iren and chasen hem out of the towne.  ?a1425
Mandev.(2) (Eg 1982)   93/16:  Þe folk of þis cuntree gers merk þam in þe visage with a hate
yrne.  c1450(1410) Walton Boeth.(Lin-C 103)   p.35:  In þaire front an yren schulde þei
bren.  c1475(a1400) Wycl.Pseudo-F.(Dub 245)   303:  Summe shal depart fro bileeue, takynge
hede to spiritis of errour..hauynge here conscience brent wiþ hoot yren of coueytise.  a1500
Henley Husb.(Sln 686)   57:  Ordygne you a strange iron to marke þem [sheep] withe in þe
forhede.  

(c)  a1425 Adam & E.(3) (Wht)   98/26:  I am þe aungel that helde the hond of Seth whanne he
wroot this wiþ an irun, haldynge it in his ri3t hond.  c1450 Treat.Fish.(Yale 171)   157/11:  Take
a feyr corke..boyr hyt þorow with a smale hoyt yrun.  

(d)  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   6950:  Me bro3te vorþ þis fury ssares..Þe
quene..stap vpe þis furi yre, euerich stape al clene.  c1330(?a1300) Tristrem (Auch)   2229:  Wiþ
hot yren..Sche þou3t to make hir clene Of sake.  c1450 Alph.Tales (Add 25719)   52/13:  Þer was
broght furth a hote yrn to prufe þe treuth with.  a1500(?c1425) Spec.Sacer.(Add 36791)  
180/35:  For to proue þe soþe wheþer sche were clene or no3t, he made to be ordeyned a longe
hote yre of the lengþe of xv feete þat his wyf schuld go vpon barfote.  

(e)  c1175(?OE) HRood (Bod 343)   34/31:  Þa het he þone bridel nimen & þa hal3æ irenu of
aliniæn het & heom mid mucele arwurðnesse in to þare hal3æ rode ahon het.  c1275(?a1200)
Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   7831:  Þa Bruttes..nomen longen ræftres..mid stronge irene heo weoren
iscod, & setten heom i Temese flod.  c1225(?c1200) St.Juliana (Bod 34)   51/561:  Ha bigon to
broken al as þet istelede irn strac hire in ouer al.  c1225(?c1200) St.Kath.(1) (Einenkel)  
2004:  Hit bigon to claterin..& to cleouen..ba þe treo & te irn.  c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1)
(Thrn)   1182:  Stryke of his heuede and stake it..Syne bere it to Bareflete and brace it in yryne
And sett it on the barbycane.  a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)   4613:  Long
pyles..dide þey make; ffaste yn Temese dide þey hem stake, Euerylkon wyþ iren schod.  (1450)
Doc.in HMC Rep.5 App.  448:  An iron to hang with busshes upon the sign.  c1450(?a1400)
Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)   3376:  If any Naue to it [the stone adamant] ne3e, þat naylid is with iryn,
Þen cleuys it ay to þe clife.  c1475(?c1400) Wycl.Apol.(Dub 245)   86:  If þe carpenter hew doun
of þe wode a tre, and graue it..setting it in a wal, festining it wiþ irne þat it fal not.  

(f)  (c1385) Chaucer CT.Kn.(Manly-Rickert)   A.1992:  The dore was al of athamant eterne,

Yclenched ouerthwart and endelong With iren togh.  (a1393) Gower CA (Frf 3)   8.1133:  Thei
haue anon the cofre stoke, And bounden it with yren faste.  c1400(?a1387) PPl.C (Hnt HM
137)   1.97:  Boxes ben y-set forþ bounden with yre [vrr. iren, Irne].  c1400(?c1390) Gawain
(Nero A.10)   215:  Þe stele of a stif staf -- þe sturne hit bi-grypte -- Þat watz wounden wyth yrn
to þe wandez ende.  (1446-7) Acc.Yatton in Som.RS 4   86:  [It. y payde]..vor bynnyng of a
panna wyt yre..xij d.  c1450 Alph.Tales (Add 25719)   487/19:  Þai sulde close hur in a tombe of
stone, and..feste þe coveryng þeron stronglie bothe with lead & strong yrn.  a1500(1396)
Indent.Francisc.in RS 4.1 (Vit F.12)   522:  That the sayd wyndos be well and sewerly berred of
yerne and closyd with wyndowes of glasse.  

(g)  (1469) Indent.Edw.IV in Archaeol.15   172:  That the seid maister..may take and receyve as
many gravers for to grave the irennes..as..there shalbe nede to have.  

(h)  (1446) Invent.Lytham in Chet.n.s.60   29:  j pare hyrenesse for bakyng of song bred.  a1500
Hrl.2378 Recipes (Hrl 2378)   78/11:  Take a peyre irrens as men schul baken with wafres.  

(i)  ?a1160 Peterb.Chron.(LdMisc 636)   an.1137:  Ðat wæron rachenteges..þat was sua maced,

ðat is, fæstned to an beom & diden an scærp iren abuton þa mannes throte & his hals ðat he ne
myhte nowiderwardes ne sitten ne lien ne slepen oc bæron al ðat iren.  ?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)  
9956:  Cristess Goddcunndnessess mahht..iss bitacnedd..Þurrh þatt bulaxess irenn.  c1230(?
a1200) Ancr.(Corp-C 402)   40/2:  I þe muð sit tet irn & o þe lihte tunge.  ?a1425 Mandev.(2)
(Eg 1982)   39/29:  Of ane of þase nayles gert þe emperour Constantyne make him ane yrne till
his brydill.  c1440 HBk.GDei (Thrn:Horstmann)   317:  In the [horse's] mouthe lygges the heuy
Iryne one þe lyghte tunge.  

3.

(a) A weapon or weapon head made of iron or steel; coll. weapons; ~ and stel, arms; ne
(neither) ~ ne stel, no weapon whatsoever; with ~ and fir, with killing and burning, with
complete devastation; (b) armor; a piece of armor; ~ and stel; ?also, an iron shirt worn for
penance.

(a)  c1150(OE) Hrl.HApul.(Hrl 6258B)   68.4/7:  Wið sle3e isernes..þeos ylcan wyrte, 3ecnucod

& to3eled, heo wunderlice 3ehælð.  a1225(?OE) Lamb.Hom.(Lamb 487)   23:  Hu mei þe leche
þe lechinen þa hwile þet iren sticat in þine wunde?  c1275(?a1216) Owl & N.(Clg A.9)  
1030:  Hom ne mai halter ne bridel Bringe vrom hore wude wise, Ne mon mid stele ne mid ire [?
read: ise].  c1300(c1250) Floris (Cmb Gg.4.27)   80/6:  Ne ire [vr. yren] ne steil ne mai þe
sle.  c1330(?a1300) Arth.& M.(Auch)   8829:  Þurch þe hert þat ysen cheld Pased.  c1330(?
c1300) Reinbrun (Auch)   p.660:  For noþing ne schel him dere Wiþ no wepne þat man may
bere, Naiþer stel ne yre.  (1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   217/28:  Þe smeryeles ne is na3t worþ to hele
þe wonde..þer-huile þet þet yzen is þerinne.  (a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   4.55:  Hanibal
passede þe hilles Pireneus and made hym away wiþ iren and wiþ fuyre among þe cruel peple of
Galles.  (a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)   222b/b:  If he [a hind] be yschote, he sekeþ þis
herbe and eteþ it and putteþ þe yren out of þe wounde.  a1400(a1325) Cursor (Vsp A.3)  
22207:  Þan sal all..underli so waful wrake, Wit irne or fire or atter beist.  a1400(a1325) Cursor
(Vsp A.3)   23468:  Þaa þat o cares all ar quite, It mai nan iren o þam bite.  c1400(?c1390)
Gawain (Nero A.10)   2265:  Gawayn..schranke a lytel with þe schulderes for þe scharp
yrne.  c1450(?1436) Siege Calais (Rome 1306)   41:  Ribawdes armed with Iren [vr. iyrne] and
stele, Was neuer better devyse.  c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)   2104:  Quarells
qwayntly qwappez thorowe knyghtez With iryn.  a1450(1408) *Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)  
68b:  Oftener is hunger cause of victorie þan þe scharp yren.  ?a1450 Agnus Castus (Stockh
10.90)   128/16:  Þis herbe tempred with esyle is to hole euery soor hurt with ony
yryn.  c1450(c1400) Vices & V.(2) (Hnt HM 147)   241/8:  Medicines ne helpeþ nou3t to hele a
wounde as longe as an harwe-heued or a quarel or oþere ieren is wiþ-ynne in þe flesche.  c1450
Burg.Practica (Rwl D.251)   255/18:  For..thorown or yrun drawne out of a man, The juce of
sauyn..y-leyd in þe hole.  c1450 Capgr. Rome (Bod 423)   51:  A ful onlikly game me þout3 it
was wher þat flesch is hewe with rusty heren.  c1450 Capgr. St.Kath.(Arun 396)  
1.121:  These..martyrs..Wyth feer and wyth yern I-slayn and I-brent.  c1450 Pilgr.LM (Cmb
Ff.5.30)   116:  Daggeres..swerdes and..oothere yrenes..ben made to sle men with.  (a1464)
Capgr. Chron.(Cmb Gg.4.12)   111:  The Normannes..distroyed Frauns and Lotharinge with fire
and yrun.  c1475(1392) *MS Wel.564 (Wel 564)   76b/b:  Þis emplastre is proued for to drawe
out an arowe heed or ony yren þat stikiþ in mannys body.  c1475(1392) *MS Wel.564 (Wel
564)   77b/a:  Þe akynge schal ceessen and..þou schalt fynde þat yren or tree abouen on þe
wounde.  a1500(1422) Yonge SSecr.(Rwl B.490)   203/7:  Be ye myndful of Moyses..whych
amalech noght fyghtynge with Iren, but wyth holy Prayer keste doune.  

(b)  c1300 Lay. Brut (Otho C.13)   1553:  Þeh he bere yre an, 3if he hine mid swerde smot, na
ros he neuere more.  c1300 Lay. Brut (Otho C.13)   22340:  Hii weren nakede, and þe oþere hi-
heled mid hire.  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   9019:  Þei it ne percede no3t þat yre
[vrr. eire, his basenet], þat blod vaste adoun drou.  c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)   1316:  Þai
dede hem arme swiþe wel Boþe in iren & in stiel.  c1400(?a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)  
5542:  Kyng Alisaunder his armes nam, And armed hym ful wel, And al his folk in jrne and
steel.  c1400(?c1390) Gawain (Nero A.10)   729:  He sleped in his yrnes.  a1425(c1333-52)
Minot Poems (Glb E.9)   9/102:  Þe Inglis men war armed wele Both in yren and in
stele.  c1425(c1400) Ld.Troy (LdMisc 595)   204:  Off thei were armed neuere so wel, He [the
dragon] brend hem thorow Iren & stel.  c1440(?a1400) Perceval (Thrn)   746:  He was armede
so wele In gude iryn and in stele.  a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)   9651:  He
stirte vp of his bere..Al armed in ire [vr. Irne] & stel.  a1450(1408) *Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)  
89b:  Þese men..were so wel ywarded and heled in yeren and steel.  ?a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.
(1) (LdMisc 656)   842:  Waspasian..steweþ his burnes, Þat wer for-beten & bled vnder bry3t
yren [vrr. iryns, jrenne].  a1500 Tundale (Adv 19.3.1)   1730:  Then saw he hym..in a fyr to the
navylle y-seytt, And above from the navyll vpward Clothed with an yron [vr. hayre] scharpe and
hard.  

4.

An iron chain; a prisoner's fetter; coll. shackles, chains; also fig. affliction, distress,
anguish.

c1230(?a1200) Ancr.(Corp-C 402)   19/9:  Gederið in ower heorte..þe pinen þe prisuns

þolieþ..þer ha liggeð wið irn heuie ifeðeret.  c1325(1307) Execution Fraser (Hrl 2253)  
111:  He wes yfetered weel, boþe wiþ yrn ant wyþ steel.  c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg
A.11)   9482:  Þe king in strong yre heo het sette vaste.  c1330(?c1300) Guy(1) (Auch)  
6199:  More iren about me is..On armes, on legges, on bodi also.  (1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)  
128/21:  Þe zene3ere is ase þe ilke þet is ine prisone in ysnes and ine ueteres.  c1380 Firumb.(1)
(Ashm 33)   1186:  Tak..& to prisoun þou hem lede..Bynd hem herde wyþ yre & steel.  (a1382)
WBible(1) (Dc 369(1))   Ps.104.18:  Thei mekeden in stockis his feet, iren passide thur3 hys
lif.  c1390 PPl.A(1) (Vrn)   4.72:  Þe kyng..Comaundede A Constable to casten him in
Irens.  a1400 NVPsalter (Vsp D.7)   106.10:  Sittand in schadow ofe dede and mirkenes, Bunden
in iren and wrecchednes. For speches ofe god gremed þai.  c1425
Found.St.Barth.  37/34:  He..felt now nat as beforne, hym-self so chargid with ferramentis and
Iryns.  (?a1439) Lydg. FP (Bod 263)   1.5814:  It were weel meriere a man to gon at large, Than
with irenes be nailed to a blok.  a1450 St.Editha (Fst B.3)   3986:  He sey3e þat cursede Bryxin
come..Stondyng in an heyron þere.  c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   3523:  Þus kept the
kyng vnkyndly his doughter..teghit her in yernes.  c1450 Alph.Tales (Add 25719)   205/23:  He
felid hym-selfe bon agayn in yrnys.  (a1464) Capgr. Chron.(Cmb Gg.4.12)   191:  He..put him
in yrunnes and brout him to London.  (1465) Acc.All Sts.Tilney   30:  Item, Ernys to ye Grete bell
hangyng xiiij s., vj d.  c1475(c1450) Idley Instr.  2.A.1372:  If it fortune the man in prison longe
to lye In Irons heuy without ony defence.  a1500(c1340) Rolle Psalter (UC 64)   104.17:  He
[Joseph] was in grete anguys, swa that iryn, that is, harde nede, was in his saule, brenand and bisy
in wrechidnes.  a1500(a1460) Towneley Pl.(Hnt HM 1)   370/95:  I was bonde full fast In yrens
for to last.  a1500 Octav.(1) (Cmb Ff.2.38)   156/1558:  The Sarsyns..ladde them wyth yron
stronge.  a1500 Stations Rome(1) (Lamb 306)   707:  Lammasse day þou vndyrstonde, whan
petur was bounde with Irnys grete.  

5.

(a) A surgical instrument of iron; coll. surgical instruments; ?surgery; with ~, by surgery;
blod ~ [see blod 1b. (d)]; (b) an instrument for cauterizing; that part of a cautery made of iron;
hot ~, brenning ~, q.v.; also fig.

(a)  c1150(?OE) PDidax.(Hrl 6258b)   3/12:  Apollon ærest he 3emetta meþodicam, þæt syndon

sa ysene þa mann mid cnifun hæle menn.  a1400 Lanfranc (Ashm 1396)   133/7:  I stoppe þe sijk
mannes eeris, þat he mowe not heere þe soun of þe yren [vr. eyren] þat trepaniþ.  c1425(a1420)
Lydg. TB (Aug A.4)   2.3122:  We most, as techeth sorgerye, With scharp yrens sechyn
remedye.  a1425 *Medulla (Stnh A.1.10)   20a/b:  Dentale: an yren to drawe out teþe.  ?a1425
*Chauliac(1) (NY 12)   48b/a:  In þe ventuose saw no3t Albucasis any man þat was hardy vpon
þe curyng of it wiþ yren.  ?a1425 *Chauliac(1) (NY 12)   174b/a:  Þer bene forsoþ many ferdful,
& þai wolde more dye þan suffre yren.  ?a1425 *MS Htrn.95 (Htrn 95)   98b/b:  What tyme þat
þou wirches wiþ instrumentes of iren, þat þu touche not þe fleische of þe wounde wiþ oute with
þine yrens.  ?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris angl.25)   25a/b:  Þat openynge is bettre þat is made by
yren þan þat is made by terynge.  ?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris angl.25)   50b/b:  If..he haue
noght þe coghe..ne none oþer accidente þat letteþ the operacioun wiþ yren..þu schalt kytte
hym.  (?1440) Palladius (DukeH d.2)   6.121:  With this brennyng yre So smyte hem of,
quycly.  c1475 *Mondeville (Wel 564)   161a/b:  What tyme þat euere þer be ony operacioun
aboute þe brayn wiþ yrn, þat þe eeris of þe pacient schulen be stoppid wiþ cotoun.  c1475
*Mondeville (Wel 564)   161b/b:  If þe brayne panne..be not woundid and þer come noon yuele
accident to þe sike man, þou schalt neuere worche vpon him wiþ yrens.  

(b)  a1400 Lanfranc (Ashm 1396)   60/4:  Brennynge of hoot yren [vr. eyren] to þe ground of þe
wounde is moost profitable.  a1400 Lanfranc (Ashm 1396)   305/17:  A cauterie is clepid streit
whanne it is maad wiþ an hoot yren, wiþ gold, or wiþ siluir.  ?a1425 *MS Htrn.95 (Htrn 95)  
94b/b:  Make..ane yren hote & þreste it doune & cauterie þe sinewe.  ?a1425 *MS Htrn.95 (Htrn
95)   106b/b:  Brenne þe place þat is corupte wiþ ane hote iren.  ?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris
angl.25)   45b/a:  Be þere made two cotones..wiþ an hote yren.  c1450(c1400) Vices & V.(2)
(Hnt HM 147)   147/3:  First schal a man legge þerto oynementes and plastres of faire
amonestynges; and..þe fretynge poudres..of harde vndertakynges; after þe yren of
discipline.  c1475(1392) *MS Wel.564 (Wel 564)   58a/a:  In vndoynge of þat þat is hool, as
whanne a surgian letiþ blood or cawterieþ wiþ yren or wiþ corosif.  c1475(1392) *MS Wel.564
(Wel 564)   86b/b:  Þou schalt cauterien hir to þe grounde wiþ a brennynge yren.  

6.

?As a precious stone; ?error for quirine.

a1500 Peterb.Lapid.(Peterb 33)   p.96:  Iren is a stone, & it haþe þese vertues..ley it vpone a
manis brest..sleping & þey schall tel al þat þey han doune.  

7.

Cpds. & combs.: (a) ~ brenner, ?one who works at smelting iron; ~ hat, a helmet of iron or steel;
~ heter, one who works the bellows or tends the furnace for smelting iron; ~ smith [OE ren-
smiþ, sen-], a blacksmith, an iron-worker; ~ squames, scales of iron rust; ~ ware, implements
made of iron; iron parts of tools, vehicles, etc.; (b) ~ bounden, bound or reinforced with iron
bands; ~ branded, of conscience: seared or branded, as by an iron; ~ grei [OE serngrei], of the
gray color of polished iron; also as name; ~ shod, of a pile or stake: tipped or shod with an iron
band; ~ wrien, dressed in armor.

(a)  (1327) Doc.in Riley Mem.Lond.  160:  [Ralph le Gilder and Richard de Bernham,]

irensmythes.  c1330(?a1300) Arth.& M.(Auch)   7114:  Wawain 3aue Oriens swiche a flat, Boþe
on helme & ysen hat.  c1330 Horn Child (Auch)   52:  Out of danmark com an here, Opon
Inglond forto were Wiþ stout ost..Wiþ yren hattes, scheld, & spere.  (a1382) WBible(1) (Dc
369(1))   Ecclus.38.29:  So the iren smyth sittende biside the stithie.  (a1382) WBible(1) (Dc
369(1))   Is.44.12:  The yren smyth with the file wro3te.  (c1395) Chaucer CT.CY.(Manly-
Rickert)   G.759:  Orpyment, brent bones, iren squames..in to poudre grounden been ful
smal.  (a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)   200a/b:  It is þe manere to tempere Iren ware with
oyle lest þey ben hard.  (1403-4) LRed Bk.Bristol   2.182:  That no Smyth yclepid a
Rowsmyth..ne none of here seruantes no be now3t thorow the towne no maner of yreware to sylle
in here armys no vppon here hedys.  a1425(a1382) WBible(1) (Corp-O 4)   1 Kings
13.19:  There was not an yren smith foundun in al the loond of Yrael.  a1425 KAlex.(LinI 150)  
1622:  Of sum weore þe brayn out spat, Al vndur þeo iren hat.  a1425 *Medulla (Stnh A.1.10)  
14b/a:  Ciniflo: an aske fist or iren heter.  (1430) Acc.Iron Master in EHR 14   514:  [Bishop
Langley farmed out all his forests..to Robert Kirkhous,] Irynbrenner.  ?a1440 Hortus (Brist-U)  
267:  Ciniflo: a ferblowere, anyren hetere.  (1447-8) in Willis & C.Cambridge 1   399:  Item, in
monee assigned for Iren, steel, Nailles, and iren ware..for the making of Barowes, Carres,
Gynnes, And for making, Amending, and Repairing of pikees, shouelles, and othere
instrumentes.  a1450-1509 Rich.(Brunner)   367:  He set his stroke on his yron hat.  a1475 Siege
Troy(1) (Hrl 525)   209/1791j:  Many les þe hede in his Iren hatte.  

(b)  (1193) in Pipe R.Soc.n.s.3   40:  Yrengrai debet xiij s.  c1330(?c1300) Reinbrun (Auch)  

p.644:  Hii come..Wiþ spere and gounfanoun, Wiþ helm on heued & brinie bri3t. Iyren-wrye
mani a kni3t To bataile wer þai boun.  (1381) Doc.in Morsbach Origurk.  4:  Jtem, a goud
irebounde wen..a goud irebounde cart.  c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   14.246:  For pouerte
hath but pokes to putten in his godis, Þere auarice hath almaries and yren-bounde
coffres.  c1400(?a1387) PPl.C (Hnt HM 137)   17.90:  Wheþer be betere to breke lasse boost hit
makeþ, To breke a beggers bagge þan an yre-bounden cofre?  a1425 *Medulla (Stnh A.1.10)  
31a:  Glaucus: yren grey.  (1425) *Indent.Elyngham (Add Charter 62408)  :  ij erynbownden
cartys.  a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)   4637:  Iren-schod was ilke
peel.  (1451) *Court R.Long Bennington  :  [Equum castratum color] Irungrey.  (1462) Will
York in Sur.Soc.30   254:  Unum yrne bonden wayn.  c1475(?c1400) Wycl.Apol.(Dub 245)  
103:  Sum schal depart fro þe feiþ..speking lesing in ypocrisy, and hauing þer consciens iren
brondit.  ?c1475 *Cath.Angl.(Add 15562)   68a:  Irne gray: glaucus.  

OED
iron, n.1

(ˈaɪən)

Forms: α. 1 ísern. β. 1 ísen, 4 yzen, ysen, yse. γ. 1 íren, 2–6 iren, (3–5 irin, -un, -yn(e), 3–6
yren, (4–5 yrin, -un(ne, -yn(e), 4–7 yron, (5 eiren, eyren, iyron, hyrone, 6 yrone), 5– iron. δ.
3–7 (9 dial.) ire, yre, (3 eire), 6–7 yer-(monger). ε. (Chiefly north. and Sc.) 3–6 yrn, 4–6 yrne,
4–7 (9 dial.) irn(e, (5 irnne, herne, pl. yrnyss, 5–6 irness(e, 8–9 airn, ern. ζ. 5 ierne, iyrne,
yirn, 5–6 yern(e, yeron, 6 yeirne, hierne.

[OE. íren, used beside ísern, ísen, = OFris. ísern, OS. îsarn (MDu. ijzen, ijzer, Du. ijzer), OHG.
îsarn, later îsan (MHG., MLG. îsern, îsen, Ger. eisen), ON. ísarn (also later earn, jarn, Sw. järn,
Da. jern), Goth. eisarn:—OTeut. type *īsarnom; cognate with OCelt. *īsarnom, whence Gaulish
compounds in īsarno-, OIr. íarn (Ir. iaran, iarun, Gael. iarunn, Manx yiarn), OWelsh hearn (:—
eharn, iharn:—ísarn), Corn. hoern, OBreton hoiarn, now houarn, pl. hern. The ulterior etymology
of the Celto-Teut. īsarno- is uncertain; and the relationship of the various types in Eng. and the
cognate languages involves many difficulties. The full Eng. type (= OHG., ON. ísarn) was
ísern, found only in OE., though still in the 11th c. The form ísen, corresp. to later OHG.
îsan, MHG. îsen, Ger. eisen, MDu. ijzen, extends from OE. to the 14th c. in Kentish and
perh. other south. dial. (at length reduced to yse, also in the comb. ysmonger: see
ironmonger). The Eng. type íren has no continental parallel; in OE., as a simple n., it was
app. chiefly poetic, but it became the standard form in ME.; the second syllable was from the
14th c. variously spelt -en, -yn, -un, and from early in the 16th c. always -on, the prevalent 16th
c. form being yron, on which iron gradually gained, and became universal about 1630. In
early ME. southern dial., iren was reduced to ire, yre, found in literature in 15th c., and still
the s.w. dialect form from Berkshire to Cornwall. In north. dial., on the other hand, iren was
compressed to irn, yrn, still used as irn, irne, ern, airn, in Sc. and north. Eng. dial. (See Eng.
Dialect Dict. s.v.) In the standard Eng. īren, īron, syncopation app. did not take place until
after diphthongation of the ī, whence through a phonetic series (ˈiːrən), (ˈaɪrən), (ˈaɪərən),
(ˈaɪər(ə)n), (ˈaɪə(r)n), came the existing (ˈaɪən); cf. the syncopated pa. pples. born, borne, torn,
worn, boln, swoln, and Sc. fal'n, fawn, from earlier boren, toren, woren, bollen, swollen, fallen.
The 15–16th c. dial. spellings iern, yern, yirn, are ambiguous: in some cases they may have meant
(ˈiːərn, ˈaɪərn), in others yern, (jərn), the latter prob. from Norse jarn, Da. jern. The plural yrnes,
irnes (-ys, -esse, etc.) could arise alike from yrn, irn, or from yren, iren (as in heven, hevnes).
   The form of the original īsarn has been much discussed; it has been viewed by some as a
derivative, and perhaps adj. form, and suggestions made of its relation to ís ice (with the notion of
‘glancing’), or to L. æs, ær-, Goth. aiz, OHG. êr, OE. âr brass; but in neither case with much
probability. Some class it among the Inde-eur. neuter words with r in nom.-acc., and -n in oblique
cases (e.g. Skt. ˈūdhar gen. ˈūdhnas, L. femur, femin-is), and suppose an orig. nom. *ˈīsar, gen. *i
ˈsonos (yielding by Verner's Law *izan-az), whence the later forms in -r and -n, and (by
contamination) -rn. The phonetic history of ON. jarn and its cognates is also doubtful. Grimm
and others suggested a borrowing of OIr. íarn, giving ON. íarn, iárn, járn; others would derive it
from izan- through eran, earn, jarn-. (See Möller in P. & B. Beiträge VII. 547; Noreen in Arkiv
for Nordisk Filologi IV. 110 note, Abriss der urgerm. Lautlehre 195.) Uncertainty also attaches to
the phonetic history of OE. íren whether it merely arose by rhotacism from ísen, or from ísern
through an intermediate írern, shortened like berern, beren, cweartern, cwearten.]

1. a.1.a A metal, the most abundant and useful of those used in the metallic state; very
variously employed for tools, implements, machinery, constructions, and in many other
applications.
   Pure iron is soft and of a silver-white colour, but is scarcely known; the metal as commonly
used has always an admixture of some other substance, usually carbon, and varies in colour from
tin-white to dark grey. It is of three kinds, differing in the proportion of carbon present, and in
properties: malleable iron, or wrought iron, which is comparatively soft, very tenacious, fusible
only at a very high temperature, and capable at a red heat of being hammered or rolled into any
required shape; cast iron, which is hard and brittle, and fusible at a lower temperature; and steel,
which partakes of the properties of both. Iron is very rarely found native (the known instances
being mostly of meteoric origin), but is obtained from its ores, which are chiefly oxides or salts of
the metal. Chemically, iron is a metallic element: symbol Fe (ferrum); atomic weight, 56. In
alchemy it was represented by the sign for the planet Mars (♂).

α    a 700 Epinal Gloss. 25 Alchior, isern [Erfurt Gloss., Alchior, isærn; Corpus Gloss., Alcion,
isern].    c 897 K. Ælfred Gregory's Past xxi. 163 Ðurh ðæt isern [is ᴁetacnod] ðæt mæᴁen ðara
ðreatunga.    c 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. i. Introd. (1890) 26 Hit is eac berende on wecga orum ares and
isernes [MS. B. c 1050 irenes] leades and seolfres.    a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 1088 Siððan folca
bearn æres cuðon and isernes‥brucan.

β    c 940 Laws of Æthelstan ii. c. 14 in Schmid Gesetze, Þonne ga he to þam hatum isene.    c 
1000 Laws of Æthelred iii. c. 6 ibid., Ælc tiond aᴁe ᴁeweald swa hwæðer he wille swa wæter
swa {isen}.    c 1000 Ælfric Deut. xxviii. 23 Si þe heofene swilce ar, and eorþe swilce isen.    c 
1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 30 Ne delfe‥nan man þa moran mid isene.    1340 Ayenb. 139 Þat nele
naȝt sette ine gold, ac ine poure metal ase yzen.    Ibid. 167 Moche þoleþ þe coupe of gold of
strokes of yzen.    13‥ K. Alis. 5149 The kyng hete‥Armen hem in breny of yse.

γ    a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 383 Heardes irenes hate ᴁeslæᴁene grindlas greate.    a 1154 O.E.
Chron. an. 1137 And diden an scærp iren.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 467 Of irin, of golde, siluer, and
bras To sundren and mengen wis he was.    a 1300 Cursor M. 7545 (Cott.) Noiþer irin [other
MSS. iren] ne yeitt ne stile.    1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 6572 Dyngyng of devels hand, With
melles of yren hate glowand.    c 1386 Chaucer Prol. 500 If gold ruste, what shal Iren doo?    1388
Wyclif Job xxviii. 2 Irun is takun fro erthe.    a 1400 Sir Perc. 745 He was armede so wele In
gude iryne and in stele.    c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 4396 Gret gyus of hyrone y-leyde hym vpone.
1450–1530 Myrr. our Ladye 58 In lyknesse of hotte brennynge yren.    c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of
Aymon vi. 136 Whan the yron is well hoote, hit werketh the better.    c 1511 1st Eng. Bk. Amer.
(Arb.) Introd. 33/1 Nether harnayse, yrone, nor stele.    1530 Palsgr. 235/1 Iron, fer.    1581
Styward Mart. Discipl. i. 44 A good and sufficient peece, flaske, touch bore, pouder, shot, fier,
yron.    1611 Bible Deut. iii. 11 His bedsted was a bedsted of yron.    1617 Hieron Wks. II 337 As
yron by yron‥so one man by another might be sharpened.    1677 A. Yarranton Eng. Improv.
147 The best Iron in the known World, is in the Forest of Dean, and in the Clay-Hill in
Shropshire.    1776 Gibbon Decl. & F. ix. I. 236 It has been observed‥that the command of iron
soon gives a nation the command of gold.    1884 W. H. Greenwood Iron & Steel 1 Chemically
pure iron exists only as a curiosity and has no practical application in the arts.

δ    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 2451 Noȝt sone deluen it wið yre.    c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 187/79 He let
nime platus of Ire.    1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1171 Stakes of ire‥he piȝte in temese grounde.
1387 Trevisa Higden i. xli. (MS. Tib. D. vii.), Flaundres loueþ þe wolle of þis lond‥Gaskuyn þe
yre & þe leed.    1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. i. 97 Boxes ben broght forþ I-bounden with yre.    c 1440
Gesta Rom. i. lxix. 312 (Harl. MS.) And bond him in þe prison, with bondis of yre.    1474–5 in
Sarum Churchw. Acc. (ed. Swayne, 1896) 19 For ij plates of ire, iiijd.    1825 Britton Beauties
Wiltsh. III. Gloss., Ire, iron.    1886 Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk., Ire, iron‥iron is the
adjective form. Compare Iron-Bar with Bar-ire.    Ibid., Ire gear, iron work generally.

ε    a 1300 Cursor M. 22207 Wit irne, or fire, or atter beist.    1306 in Pol. Songs (Camden) 217
He wes y-fetered weel Both with yrn ant wyth steel.    1375 Barbour Bruce x. 364 A cruk‥Of
Irn, that wes styth and square.    c 1400 Apol. Loll. 86 Festining it wiþ irne þat it fal not.    c 1420
Liber Cocorum (1862) 36 Rost hit on broche of irne.    c 1440 York Myst. xxxiv. 96 Bragges Of
irnne and stele full strange.    a 1450 Mankind (Brandl 1898) 276 Lyke as þe smyth trieth erne in
þe feere.    1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 59 Quhen‥marcus crassus, vas slane be the parthiens, the lyft
did rane yrn.    1621 G. Sandys Ovid's Met. xv. (1626) 311 To Brasse from Silver; and to Yr'ne
from Brasse.    1816 Scott Antiq. xxiii, Bits o' capper and horn and airn.    1826 J. Wilson Noct.
Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 208 Like a great anvil‥made o' wood instead o' airn.    1868 Atkinson
Cleveland Gloss., Airn, iron.

ζ    c 1400 Destr. Troy 9133 As pure watur pouret vn polishet yerin.    Ibid. 10463 Barrit hom full
bigly with boltes of yerne.    1447 O. Bokenham Seyntys (Roxb.) 205 Wyth hookys of yirn.
1516 in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 397 Canvas, rossen, ropis, bordes, yerne, or yeirne,
or any thinge elles to them belonginge.    1535 in Weaver Wells Wills (1890) 51 A payre of wells
bownd with yeron.    1545 Joye Exp. Dan. iii. D vij, Golde, syluer, latyne, yerne.    1577 Dee
Relat. Spir. i. (1659) 167 A black box of yern.

b.1.b with an and pl. A variety or sort of iron.

   1858 Greener Gunnery 194 If you wish to have a heavy single barrel made from Damascus, or
any of the best irons.    1887 D. A. Low Machine Draw. (1892) 77 The grey varieties of cast iron
are called foundry irons‥while the white varieties are called forge irons‥from the fact that they
are used for conversion into wrought iron.
c.1.c Med. A preparation of iron or of some compound of it, used in medicine as a tonic.

   [1753 Chambers Cycl. Supp. s.v., Every preparation of Iron is both aperient and astringent in
degree.]    1803 Med. Jrnl. X. 186 It is cured by iron which has undergone no preparation, but the
minutest division of its particles.    1831 J. Davies Manual Mat. Med. 86 Iron and its different
preparations are endowed with a very manifest tonic action.    1844–57 G. Bird Urin. Deposits
(ed. 5) 256 The headache occasionally following the use of iron is readily prevented.    Mod. The
girl is anæmic; she ought to take iron.

d.1.d Geol. Any meteorite which contains a high proportion of iron.

   1802 [see stone n. 1 c].    1842 Amer. Jrnl. Sci. & Arts XLIII. 358 The imbedded grains of
olivin in the Pallas iron of Siberia, and the Otampa iron of South America.    1868 Geol. Mag. V.
75 The bodies which are comprised under the general name of meteorites have long since been
arranged under two great divisions, the irons and the stones.    1920 Mineral. Mag. XIX. 56 In
this scheme [of the author], meteorites are divided into four classes, viz. Irons, Stony-irons,
Chondritic Stones, and Non-chondritic Stones.    1962 B. Mason Meteorites ix. 130 In total mass
the iron meteorites far outweigh the stones, since all large meteorites are irons, and the average
mass of an iron is much greater than that of a stone.    1971 I. G. Gass et al. Understanding Earth
viii. 116/1 The basic division [of meteorites] into irons, stony-irons, and stones is simple and
straightforward.

2. a.2.a With defining attribute: see also bar- (n.1 30), bog- (n.1), cast-, pig-, wrought-iron, etc.
   white iron: see quot. 1881; also popularly applied to tinned iron.

   1632 Lithgow Trav. v. 205 Joynd in three parts, with Lead or white Iron.    1665 D. Dudley
Met. Martis (1851) 32 The Author did sell pigg or Cast Iron made with Pit coal at four pounds
per Tun.    1745 De Foe's Eng. Tradesm. xlv. (1841) II. 165 Tin plates, single and double, called
White Iron, from Saxony.    1795 Pearson in Phil. Trans. LXXXV. 343 Varieties‥differently
named by artizans, namely‥pig, or sow iron; blue, gray, white cast iron;—soft iron; tough iron;
brittle iron; hard iron.    1841 H. Miller O.R. Sandst. viii. (1842) 184 Bog iron, and the clay
ironstone, so abundant in the Coal Measures.    1881 Raymond Mining Gloss. s.v., Wrought-iron,
also called bar-iron and weld-iron, is the product of the forge or the puddling furnace, cast-iron of
the blast furnace.‥ Gray forge or mill-iron‥mottled (spotted with white iron), and white (hard,
brittle, radially crystalline, containing its carbon mostly in alloy with the iron, and showing no
visible graphite).‥ So-called silver-gray, glazy, or carbonized iron is usually an iron rendered
brittle by excess of silicon.

3.3 In figurative uses, as a type of extreme hardness or strength.

   1612–15 Bp. Hall Contempl., O.T. xviii. iv, This load⁓stone‥shall draw to us even hearts
of iron.    1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, iii. ii. 425 Beare witnesse, all that haue not hearts of Iron.
1695 Temple Hist. Eng., He had a Body of Iron, as well as a Heart of Steel.    1858 Longfellow
M. Standish i, Short of stature he was,‥deep-chested, with muscles and sinews of iron.    1873
R. Broughton Nancy III. 238 Embraced in the icy iron of his [Death's] arms.
4. a.4.a An instrument, appliance, tool, utensil, or particular part of one, made of the metal.
(Often with defining word prefixed, as curling-iron, grappling-iron, etc.: see these words.)

   a 700 Epinal Gloss. 883 Scalbellum, bredisern [Erfurt Gloss., Scabellum, bred isærn].    c 
897 K. Ælfred Gregory's Past. xxvi. 185 Sua se læce hyd his isern wið ðone monn ðe he sniðan
wile.    c 1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 4 Se man‥nime‥healswyrt and isenheardan butan ælcan isene
ᴁenumen.    1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 6950 Heo stap vpe þis furi yre, euerich stape al clene.    13‥
S.E. Leg. (MS. Bodl. 779) in Herrig's Archiv LXXXII. 311/197 Þe man nom his yrin & to þe
brigge it drowȝ.    c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) x. 39 Of ane of þase nayles gert‥Constantyne
make him ane yrne till his brydill.    c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. (MS. B.) 133 Þat he mowe noȝt
here þe sonn of þe eyren þat trepanyth.    c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. i. 136 Thyn yrons‥For
graffyng and for kittynge.    1463–4 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 153 Pro factura de le Milne
Yrennys.    1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §3 It must be wel steeled, and that shall cause‥the yrens to
laste moche lenger.    1563 Edin. City Rec. 26 Sept. in Ann. Scott. Printing xv. (1890) 156 The
said Ihonne had na vtheris guddis saifing his prenting irnis and letteris.    1611 Bible Job xli. 7
Canst thou fill his skinne with barbed irons?    1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 66 When you set the
Iron of the Fore-Plane.    1748 F. Smith Voy. Disc. I. 41 note, With an Ice-Hook, which is an iron
shaped like an S.    1824 Longfellow Woods in Winter iv, Shrilly the skater's iron rings.    1837
Thackeray Ravenswing i, A little more of the iron to the left whisker.    c 1850 Rudim. Navig.
(Weale) 126 Irons, the tools used by the caulkers for driving in the oakum.    1875 Carpentry &
Join. 25 Under the supposition that the iron‥projects equally its entire breadth below the
sole of the plane.

b.4.b esp. An iron instrument used for branding or cauterizing; a brand-iron.

   c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 303 Brent wiþ hoot yren of coueytise.    c 1400 Mandeville
(Roxb.) xxi. 93 Þe folk of þis cuntree gers merk þam in þe visage with a hate yrne.    1541 Act 33
Hen. VIII, c. 12 §6 To‥make‥a fire of coles, and there to make redy searynge yrons.    1611
Bible 1 Tim. iv. 2 Hauing their conscience seared with a hote iron.    1613 Purchas Pilgrimage
(1614) 768 The women with an Iron pounce and race their bodies, legs‥and armes, in curious
knots.    1856 Mrs. Browning Aur. Leigh ii. 699 As guiltless men may feel The felon's iron‥and
scorn the mark Of what they are not.

†c.4.c pl. Dies used in striking coins. Obs.

   Clerk of the Irons, an officer of the Royal Mint who had charge of the manufacture and use of
the dies; in 1815 merged in the Superintendent of machinery.

   1483 in Attorney-General's Rep. Mint Officers, John Shaa, graver of the coining irons of gold
and silver within England and Calais.    1540 Sc. Acts Jas. V (1814) II. 378/2 All personis þat‥
counterfutis þe kingis Irnis of cunȝe.    1566 in Harl. MS. 698, lf. 120 Robert Hornby, Clerk of
the Irons.    1656 Cromwell in Antiq. Rep. (1808) II. 408 The office of Sole-chiefe Engraver of
the irons of and for the moneyes of us and our successors.    1663 Mint Records, Puncheons,
matrices, stamps and Dyes, or any Irons for Coyning.    1706 Phillips, Clerk of the Irons, an
Officer in the Mint, who is to take care that the Irons be clean and fit to work with.    1848 W.
Wyon Evidence bef. Commission, The Superintendent, as Clerk of the irons, keeps an account of
all blank dies.
d.4.d Whaling, etc. A harpoon. (= harping-iron.)

   1674 tr. Martiniere's Voy. N. Countries 115 One of our Shallops coming too near the other Fish
before they threw out their Irons.    1697 W. Dampier Voy. I. 37 Striking Instruments, as
Harpoons, Fish hooks, and Tortoise-Irons.    1853 Househ. Words 8 Jan. 400 The harpoon or
‘iron’ as we whalers call it.    Ibid. 401 Both irons are buried in the whale.

e.4.e Golf. A golf-club having an iron head which is more or less laid back in order to loft the
ball: see quot. 1890.

   1857 Chambers's Inform. II. 694/1 The sand-iron comes into play when the ball lies in a
‘bunker’, or sand-pit.    Ibid., When a ball lies in whins or other hazards of a similar nature‥the
iron is the best club for freeing it from such impediments.    Ibid. 696/1 Some few golfers put
almost exclusively with a metal club, an iron or cleek, to wit.    1890 H. Hutchinson Golf (Badm.
Libr.) 64 There are heavy irons and light irons, driving irons, lofting irons, and sand irons.    1894
Times 5 Mar. 7/5 His opponent used the iron well and played a very good short game.

f.4.f slang. A portable fire-arm; a pistol.

   1836 W. H. Maxwell Capt. Blake III. xi, Take care and have the marking irons in your pocket.
1888 J. Inglis Tent Life Tigerland 288 Once again‥our shooting irons spoke, adding still another
quota to the bag.    1889 Boldrewood Robbery under Arms xxxvii, Put down your irons‥or‥
we'll drop ye where ye stand.

g.4.g slang. Money. Cf. iron-man 1 c and d.

   1785 Grose Dict. Vulgar T., Iron, money in general.    1906 E. Pugh Spoilers i. 5 The iron
you're goin' to give me.    1966 C. Rougvie Gredos Reckoning iii. 50 He was earning a bit of iron.

h.4.h pl. Iron supports to correct bow-legs, etc.

   1838 Dickens Nich. Nick. (1839) viii. 67 Children‥with irons upon their limbs, boys of
stunted growth.    1884 W. Pye Surg. Handicraft xxv. 319 Wooden splints are‥preferable to
‘irons’.    1927 W. E. Collinson Contemp. Eng. 56 We could see‥deformities due to rickets or
injuries and the remedies e.g. irons to correct bow-legs.

i.4.i (Usu. in pl.) A stirrup. Cf. stirrup-iron 1.

   1894 Country Gentleman's Catal. 173 Saddles‥with girths, stirrup leathers and irons,
complete.    1907 Yesterday's Shopping (1969) 304 Gentleman's spring-side safety irons, with
Prussian sides.    1955 Times 30 June 3/7 He bumped Gawthorpe badly, causing Nevett to stand
up quickly in his irons.    1963 E. H. Edwards Saddlery xix. 145 There are two main variations of
the basic iron which are the Bent Top iron‥and the Kournakoff.    1969 D. M. Goodall tr.
Müller's Pocket Dict. Horseman's Terms 70 Stirrup/irons, der Steigbügel.

j.4.j pl. Eating utensils. dial. and slang.

   1905 Eng. Dial. Dict. Suppl., Irons.‥ Cum. Knife and fork, in phr. to be a good fist with one's
irons, to have a good appetite.    1943 in Hunt & Pringle Service Slang 40.    1946 J. Irving Royal
Navalese 97 Irons (eating irons), the sailor's name for his knife, fork and spoon.

k.4.k slang. An old motor vehicle.

   1935 Sun (N.Y.) 19 Feb. 28/1 ‘Iron’ is the dealer's name for an obsolete [automobile].    1961 J.
Stroud Touch & Go xi. 105 ‘This iron of yours ―’ began Frank.    1963 Amer. Speech XXXVIII.
42 Iron, an old truck.    1967 M. Reynolds After Some Tomorrow 9 Well, it would mean being
able to maintain a decent hovercar rather than the‥four wheel iron he was currently driving.

l.4.l Used as a form of currency in Sierra Leone.

   1936 G. Greene Journey without Maps i. iii. 64 One could speculate in irons: the rate that day
was twenty for fourpence.

m.4.m slang. A jemmy used in housebreaking.

   1941 ‘V. Davis’ Phenomena in Crime xix. 251 The bishop, cane, iron, or stick.    1962 John o'
London's 25 Jan. 82/1 Tools for breaking into other people's premises are irons.

5.5 esp. An implement of iron used when heated to smooth out linen, to press down the seams of
cloth, etc.; defined according to shape and structure, as box-iron, flat-iron, Italian-iron, etc. In
recent use: an electric iron (see electric a. 2 b).

   1613 J. May Declar. Est. Clothing v. 27 With a wet cloth and a hotte Iron, they ouerrunne those
lists.    1769 Pub. Advertiser 18 May 3/4 To be sold by Auction great variety of Box Irons and
Flat Irons.    1833 J. Holland Manuf. Metal II. 253 Dealers commonly distinguish these useful
implements by the terms ‘sad iron’, ‘box iron’, and ‘Italian iron’.    1840 Dickens Old C. Shop x,
[She] came to the fire-place for another iron.

6.6 †a.6.a An iron weapon; a sword. Obs. b.6.b Used (without an and pl.) in various allusive
expressions referring to warfare or slaughter. Cf. F. fer.

   Beowulf (Z.) 893 Ðæt swurd‥dryhtlic iren.    c 1000 Sax. Leechd. I. 132 Wið sleᴁe isernes
oððe stenges þeos ylce wyrt‥wundurlice ᴁehæleþ.    a 1300 Cursor M. 23468 (Cott.) It mai
nan iren o þam bite.    c 1340 Ibid. 26924 Quilis þat irene is in wounde is plaster nane mai make
hit sounde.    1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) V. 219 [Alaric] destroyed al‥wiþ yre and wiþ fuyre
[L. ferro et igne].    1494 Fabyan Chron. v. cxiii. 87 Wastynge & destroyinge the countrey with
fyre and irne.    1601 Shakes. Twel. N. iii. iv. 276 Meddle you must that's certain, or forsweare to
weare iron about you.    1608 D. T. Ess. Pol. & Mor. 66 b, To make way‥through fieldes of
Iron, and streames of blood, to that imperiall dignitie.    1639 T. Brugis tr. Camus' Moral Relat.
211 Such biting replyes‥that‥hee would have sought to redresse it with an iron.    1665 Sir T.
Herbert Trav. (1677) 131 Undertakes to make the Turk eat cold Iron.    1871 R. Ellis Catullus
lxiv. 355 Charge Troy's children afield and fell them grimly with iron.    1898 Daily News 1 Aug.
4/7 Bismarck‥is known throughout the world as ‘the man of blood and iron’. The phrase
was his own. Great questions (he said) are decided, not by speeches and majorities, but by
iron and blood (1862).

7. a.7.a An iron shackle or fetter; usually in pl. Most freq. in phr. in irons, said of a person
having the feet or hands fettered. Formerly also, less definitely, in iron, in bonds, in captivity. Cf.
F. fers.

   c 825 Vesp. Psalter cvi[i]. 10 ᴁebundne in weðelnisse & irene.    a 1000 Ags. Ps. (Th.) cvi. 9
ᴁebundene bealuwe feterum‥and on iserne [ferro].    1340 Ayenb. 128 Þe ilke þet is ine prisone
in ysnes and ine ueteres.    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. iv. 85 Þe kynge‥comaunded a constable to
casten hym in yrens.    c 1400 Destr. Troy 3523 The kyng‥ffor hir tales of truthe teghit her in
yernes.    c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon xvi. 369 And thenne he made to be broughte a grete
payre of yrens, and fetred hym wyth theym, bothe hys fete togyder.    1533 Bellenden Livy iii.
(1822) 225 Virginius commandit the serjand to apprehend Ceso, and put him in irnis.    1539
Bible (Great) Ps. cvii. 10 Soch as syt in darcknesse & in the shadow of death, beyng fast bound in
mysery & yron.    1588 Greene Pandosto (1607) 46 Pained with the burden of cold and heauie
Irons.    1611 Bible Ps. cv. 18 Ioseph‥Whose feete they hurt with fetters: he was layd in iron.
1653 H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. xxxii. 126 The Jaylors clapt irons on our feet, and manacles on
our hands.    1676 tr. Guillatiere's Voy. Athens 272 They clapt him in irons.    1726 G. Shelvocke
Voy. round World 26 He would see the ring-leaders‥punish'd‥carrying them home in irons.
1790 Burns Tam O' Shanter 131 A murderer's banes in gibbet airns.    1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng.
v. I. 562 When the Earl reached the Castle his legs were put in irons, and he was informed that he
had but a few days to live.    1884 Pae Eustace 124 Boatswain, if those fellows make any more
noise, have them taken below and put in irons.

b.7.b Phr. ‘The iron entered into his soul’, Lat. ferrum pertransiit animam ejus, Ps. civ. (cv.) 18, a
mistranslation in the Vulgate of the Heb. (lit. ‘his person entered into the iron’, i.e. fetters, chains)
followed by the earlier Eng. versions (but not in that of 1611—see above), which has passed into
fig. use to express the impression made by captivity, affliction, or hard usage, upon the very
‘soul’ or inner being of the sufferer.

   c 825 Vesp. Psalter civ. 18 Iren ðorhleorde sawle his.    a 1340 Hampole Psalter civ. 17 Yryn
passid thorgh his saule.    1388 Wyclif Ps. civ. [cv.] 18 Thei maden lowe hise [Joseph's] feet in
stockis, irun passide by his soule.    1539 Bible (Great) Ps. cv. 18 Whose fete they hurt in the
stockes: the yron entred in to hys soule.    1768 Sterne Sent. Journ. (1778) II. 32 (Captive), I saw
the iron enter into his soul.    1843 Macaulay Ess., Mad. D'Arblay (1865) II. 304/2 She was
sinking into a slavery worse than that of the body. The iron was beginning to enter into the soul.

c.7.c fig. (Naut.) A square-rigged vessel is said to be in irons when, the yards being so braced that
some sails are laid aback in coming up into the wind, she will not ‘cast’ or turn either way.

   1832 Marryat N. Forster xxii, The yards would not swing round;‥and the ship was in irons.
Ibid. xlix, The pirate‥not having been expeditious in trimming his sails, laid in irons, as seamen
term it, heeling over to the blast.    1846 Raikes Life Sir J. Brenton 371 Neither helm or sails had
any power over the ships, which were to use the common phrase‥completely in irons.    1897 M.
Kingsley W. Africa 350, I was in a canoe that made such audaciously bad tacks, missed stays, got
into irons, and in general behaved in a way that ought to have lost her captain his certificate.
8.8 = iron-shrub: see 15.

   1756 P. Browne Jamaica 179 The slender reclining Iron. This beautiful little plant rises
generally in an oblique direction.

9.9 = corrugated iron. Austral. and N.Z.

   1924 ‘R. Daly’ Outpost iii. 28 The Residency was a large iron-and-weatherboard bungalow.
1944 D. Stewart in D. M. Davin N.Z. Short Stories (1953) 270 We sat for hours‥listening to the
rain hammering on the iron roof.    1948 V. Palmer Golconda x. 73 Her banter usually glanced
off Neda like hail from an iron roof.    1956 G. Bowen Wool Away! (ed. 2) x. 115 Building paper
should be used under the iron above the shearing board.

10.10 Ellipt. form of iron hoof, rhyming slang for ‘poof’, a homosexual.

   1936 J. Curtis Gilt Kid viii. 79 You gets into bed and goes straight off to kip, never touched me
you didn't, you great iron.    1938 J. Phelan Lifer iv. 39 Harry had a young iron an' Painter butted
in on him.    1961 Partridge Adventuring among Words xii. 58 Gorblimey, 'e's an iron, did'n yeh
know?

11.11 Theatr. slang. Ellipt. form of iron curtain 1.

   1951 R. Southern in Oxf. Compan. Theatre 171/2 Another curtain in the proscenium opening is
the Safety or Fireproof Curtain, sometimes nicknamed the Iron.    1952 Granville Dict. Theatr.
Terms 102 Iron's down.    1967 N. Marsh Death at Dolphin v. 112 ‘I'll take the Iron up and you
can see Jeremy Jones's set for the first act.’ He‥sent up the elegantly painted fireproof curtain.

12.12 Phrases. a.12.a to strike while (when) the iron is hot, or at its highest heat: to act at the
appropriate time. b.12.b to have (or put) many (too many, etc.) irons in the fire: (a) to have or be
engaged in (too) many occupations or undertakings; (b) to have or use several expedients or
alternatives to attain a purpose. to put (or lay) every iron (or all irons) in the fire: to try every
means. c.12.c fresh (or new) off the irons: fresh from school or studies; newly made or prepared;
brand-new.

a.    c 1386 Chaucer Melib. ⁋70 Right so as whil that Iren is hoot men sholden smyte.    1523 St.
Papers Hen. VIII, IV. 85 And now the iron is hote, it is tyme to stryke.    1612–15 Bp. Hall
Contempl., O.T. xviii. vii, The iron was now hot with this heavenly fire; Elijah‥strikes
immediately.    1615 Chapman Odyss. xii. 487 [He] their iron strook At highest heat.    1753
Foote Eng. in Paris i. (1763) 13 Then strike while the Iron's hot.

b.    1549 Sir W. Paget Let. to Somerset 7 July (P.R.O., St. Pap. Dom. Edw. VI, VIII. No. 4), Put
no more so many yrons in the fyre at ones.    1579–80 North Plutarch (1676) 602 Now Pompey‥
under-hand did lay all the irons in the fire he could to bring it to pass.    1621 Burton Anat. Mel.
iii. iv. i. ii. (1651) 393/2 He [the Pope] hath more actors in his Tragædy, more irons in the fire.
1624 Capt. Smith Virginia iv. 159 They that have many Irons in the fire, some must burne.    c 
1645 Howell Lett. (1650) I. ii. xv. 89 That King‥having too many irons in the fire at his own
home.    1721 Kelly Scot. Prov. 255 Many Irons in the Fire, some must cool.    1728 Vanbr. &
Cib. Prov. Husb. ii. i. 44 Man. Is it full as practicable as what you have told me? Sir Fran. Ay‥
you'll find that I have more Irons i' th' Fire than one!    1751 R. Paltock P. Wilkins (1884) II. xv.
156, I had now several important irons in the fire, and all to be struck whilst hot.    1762 Smollett
Sir L. Greaves iii. (1793) I. 62 Anthony Darnel had begun to canvass, and was putting every iron
in the fire.    1852 A. Gray Lett. (1893) 391 College work is now over and I can get on with fewer
irons in the fire.    1886 Overton Evang. Revival 18th C. vii. 118 [He] had far too many irons in
the fire to find time for original research.    1887 19th Cent. Aug. 240 The State‥cannot add to
its other irons the supervision of all that is interesting in art and architecture.

c.    1683 A. D. Art Converse 25 Young and unexperienced‥as they say commonly, fresh off the
Irons.    1808–80 Jamieson, New aff the irnes, a phrase used with respect to one who has recently
finished his studies.

13.13 attrib. Of or pertaining to iron: cf. iron a.

   1530 Palsgr. 235/1 Iron ruste, ferrvge.    1638 Sir T. Herbert Trav. (ed. 2) 235 Few of them
know how to read, Bellona trayning them up in iron dances.    1756 (title) The Case of the
Importation of Bar Iron from our own Colonies of North America; humbly recommended to the
consideration of the present Parliament, by the Iron Manufacturers of Great Britain.    1785 W.
Gibbons Reply Sir L. O'Brien title-p., The present state of the Iron Trade between England and
Ireland.    1854 Ronalds & Richardson Chem. Technol. (ed. 2) I. 235 The mode of applying the
hot blast to lead and iron smelting.    1868–72 Watts Dict. Chem. V. 386 In the green portion
alone, there exist no fewer than 70 bright iron lines.    1873 Dawson Earth & Man vi. 110
Peroxide of iron or iron rust.    1884 Pall Mall G. 23 Sept. 8/2 The Iron and Steel Institute met at
Chester this morning.    1896 Daily News 21 Oct. 2/7 The Blackburn iron trade strike was
settled‥yesterday afternoon.    1897 M. Kingsley W. Africa 64 The Bubi is not only unlearned
in iron lore, but he was learned in stone.

14.14 General Combinations. a.14.a attrib., as iron-bond, iron-borings, iron-dross, iron-filings,

iron-furnace, iron-gear, iron-hail, iron-vein, etc. (sense 1 c) iron pill, iron tablet, iron tonic. b.14.b
obj. and obj. gen., as iron-containing, iron-digesting, iron-eating, iron-producing, iron-using, etc.,
adjs.; iron-drawing, iron-forging, iron-mining, iron-puddling, iron-smelting ns.; iron-heater, iron-
holder, iron-moulder, iron-planer, iron-puddler, iron-turner, etc., ns. c.14.c instrumental, as iron-
braced, iron-branded, iron-burnt, iron-clenched, iron-fastened, iron-guarded, iron-marked, iron-
sheathed, iron-stained, iron-strapped, iron-teeming, etc., adjs.; iron-crust vb. See also iron-bound,
-cased, -clad, etc. d.14.d similative, esp. with adjs. of colour: = like iron, as iron-black, iron-blue,
iron-grey; or = like iron-rust, as iron-brown, iron-red. Also iron-coloured, iron-like. (See also iron
a. 2, iron-hard, etc.)

   1868 Dana Min. (ed. 5) 144 Paracolumbite is an *iron-black mineral.

   1494–5 in Swayne Churchw. Acc. Sarum (1896) 43 Michaeli Smyth pro‥emendacione de lez
*Ironbondes iiijd.

   1874 Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 423 A pretty good price is paid for the *iron-borings.
   1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. v. 7 Hurling high his *yron braced arme.

   c 1400 Apol. Loll. 103 Hauing þer consciens *iren brondit.

   1610 Holland Camden's Brit. i. 84 Those *yron-brent markes in Picts now seene all bloodlesse
as they die.

   1851 S. Judd Margaret i. xiv. (Ward & Lock) 110 The horned-pout, with its pearly iridine
breast and *iron-brown back.

   1874 Thearle Naval Archit. 135 The joint‥in the bolt hole is *iron-caulked.

   1823 Scott Quentin D. xxviii, A strong *iron-clenched door admitted them.

   1693 Lond. Gaz. No. 2843/4 He wears a French *Iron coloured Drugget Coat.    1730 A.
Gordon Maffei's Amphith. 351 The red Iron-coloured, and yellow Coverings of the Theatre.
1843 A. Bethune Sc. Fireside Stor. 5 His complexion had in it‥little of that dusky hue which, for
want of a better name, has been called iron coloured.    1849 D. G. Rossetti Let. 27 Sept. (1965) I.
61 The iron-coloured sea.    1909 S. W. Bushell Chinese Art (ed. 2) II. viii. 26 Bowls and cups
with iron-coloured feet and brown mouths.

   1901 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 23 Nov. 1540/1 It also revealed a yellowish-brown *iron-containing
substance within the primitive nuclei of red globules.    1926 Jrnl. Biol. Chem. LXX. 474 The
amounts of iron-containing supplements to be fed.    1946 Nature 12 Oct. 516/2 The
intensification due to the formation of the iron-containing complex would increase the slope of
the density/concentration curves at the lower concentrations of molybdenum.

   1599 Nashe Lenten Stuffe (1871) 60 It will embrawn and *iron-crust his flesh.

   a 1716 South Serm. II. x. (R.), Such an *iron-digesting faith have they.

   1620 T. Granger Div. Logike 66 Heate is the essentiall propertie of fire, *yron⁓drawing, of the
loadstone.

   1796 H. Hunter St. Pierre's Stud. Nat. (1799) I. 124 Look at the anfractuosities of a simple
morsel of *iron-dross.

   a 1631 Drayton Noah's Flood Wks. (1748) 464/1 The *iron-eating ostrich.

   1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade s.v., Vessels whose planks and timbers are rivetted with iron nails
and bolts instead of copper, are said to be *iron-fastened.

   1772 Priestley in Franklin's Wks. (1887) IV. 489 A mixture of *iron filings and brimstone.

   1839 Carlyle Chartism viii. 168 The Saxon kindred burst forth into cotton-spinning‥*iron-
forging.
   1874 Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 332 An ironmine in this region is not deemed of any
value‥not an *iron-furnace has been built.

   1871 Palgrave Lyr. Poems 103 Across the *iron-furrow'd way.

   1477–8 in Swayne Churchw. Acc. Sarum (1896) 22 Pro ferramento vocato le *yregere.    1886
Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. 372 Ire gear‥would mean all kinds of ironmongery, and
completed iron-work.

   c 1820 S. Rogers Italy (1839) 187 No strangers to the *iron-hail of war.

   1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, *Iron⁓heater, the piece of metal which is heated in the fire for a
laundress's box-iron or Italian-iron.

   Ibid., *Iron-holder , a stand for a laundress's smoothing-iron.

   1896 ‘M. Field’ Attila ii. 49 He shall be scourged With the *iron-knotted lash they use for
slaves.

   1577 tr. Bullinger's Decades (1592) 301 We Christians haue nothing to do with the *yronlike
philosophy since our Lorde‥vtterly condemned it.    1908 Daily Chron. 17 Sept. 6/3 The
discipline is as iron-like as ever.    1963 Times 25 Feb. 5/7 Shepherds with Byzantine, iron-like
faces protect their flocks against the wolves.

   1674 Lond. Gaz. No. 896/4 Run away‥a Blackamoor Man‥*Iron-marked in his Brest with
the sign of a Greyhound.    1710 Ibid. No. 4680/4 A dark Bay Gelding‥with a T Iron-mark'd on
the near Buttock.

   1877 Hewitt in Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 365 The commencement of *iron-mining at
Lake Superior, about the year 1856.

   1879 Family Physician 809 This condition, known as chlorosis or green sickness, is readily
controlled by the use of iron.‥ The systematic use of the *iron pills is almost invariably attended
with the most satisfactory results.    1912 More Secret Remedies (B.M.A.) 203 The pills were‥a
form of Blaud's pill, somewhat weaker than the official iron pill.

   1863 P. Barry Dockyard Econ. 127 England is an *iron-producing and iron-manufacturing

country.

   1871 Athenæum 15 July 85 There is not any labour so severe as that of the *iron-puddler.

   1820 D. Wordsworth Jrnl. 11 Aug. (1941) II. 125 Its crags of grey and *iron-red hues.    1909
S. W. Bushell Chinese Art (ed. 2) II. viii. 29 Coral or iron-red (fan hung).    1974 Country Life
3/10 Jan. 10/1 Asil game cocks‥head and breast enamelled with iron-red flecks over a wash of
rouge-de-fer.
   1695 Woodward Nat. Hist. Earth iv. (1723) 198 Crystallised Ores, and Minerals, e.g. the *Iron-
Rhombs, the Tin Grains.

   1884 J. Parker Apost. Life III. 258 A gate iron-bound and *iron-riveted.

   1645 Boate Ireland's Nat. Hist. (1652) 127 The *Iron-rock being full of joints, is with pick-axes
easily divided.

   1820 Scott Abbot iii, She rushed to him, clasped his *iron-sheathed frame in her arms.

   1876 Meredith in Fortn. Rev. 1 June 829 A shape in stone, Sword-hacked and *iron-stained.
1915 E. R. Lankester Diversions of Naturalist vii. 63 A few only iron-stained and yellow.

   1957 Brit. Nat. Formulary (B.M.A.) (ed. 4) 147 Ferrous Carbonate Tablets, B.P.C. Synonyms:
Blaud's tablets: *iron tablets.

   1777–8 R. Potter Æschylus (1779) I. 28 (Jod.) And land upon this *iron-teeming earth.

   1861 J. G. Sheppard Fall Rome iii. 140 The *iron-tipped arrows flew in clouds.

   1933 E. C. Pearce Short Encycl. for Nurses 24 Good nourishing food,‥combined with the use
of *iron tonics, is all that is necessary.    1973 J. Porter It's Murder with Dover ix. 88 Getting her
daughter to take a dose of iron tonic.

   1865 Tylor Early Hist. Man. ix. 247 The *iron-using races of Southern Africa.

   1879 Sir. G. Campbell White & Black 243 The best *iron-veins are‥a good deal worked-out.

15. a.15.a Special Combinations: iron bacterium, any of various bacteria, found esp. in fresh
water, which are capable of oxidizing ferrous salts to ferric hydroxide (perhaps obtaining energy
thereby) and storing the end product in their structure; iron-binding a., able to combine
chemically with iron; n., combination with iron; also attrib.; iron buff, hydrated ferric oxide used
as a dye for cotton by impregnating the cloth with a soluble iron salt, passing it through an alkali
solution, and oxidizing; iron-cement, a kind of very hard cement; iron-clay a., of mixed iron and
clay; iron-cloth, chain-mail, esp. as made in modern times for cleaning greasy vessels; iron
deficiency, insufficient iron in an organism or in its food; also attrib., so iron-deficient adj.; iron-
fall, a fall of meteoric iron; iron-free a., free from or destitute of iron; †proof against the force of
iron; iron gang Austral., a gang of prisoners working in irons; iron-grass, a local name for knot-
grass (Polygonum aviculare), also for Aira cæspitosa and species of Carex (Britten & H.); iron-
liquor, ‘a solution of acetate of iron, used as a mordant by calico-printers’ (Simmonds Dict. Trade
1858); iron loss Electr. = core-loss (core n.1 16); iron-maker, a manufacturer of iron; so iron-
making vbl. n.; †iron-mill, a place where bar-iron is made; iron mountain, a mountain rich in iron
ore; iron period Archæol. = Iron Age 2; iron play Golf, a specified manner of playing with irons
(sense 4 e); so iron player; iron ration, (a) (usu. pl.) an emergency ration of tinned food, esp. as
provided in the armed services; (b) various extended and fig. uses; iron-saw, a circular saw for
cutting hot iron; iron-scale = hammer-scale (see hammer n.1 7); iron shot Golf, a shot made with
an iron; iron-shrub, a name for Sauvagesia erecta, also called herb of St. Martin; iron-sponge,
spongy iron, iron in a loose state with little cohesion: see sponge; iron-stain, a stain (on cloth,
etc.) produced by iron-rust or tincture of iron, or a similar stain produced on a plant by a fungus;
iron-stand, a stand on which to place a heated iron (see 5); iron-strap (Whaling) = foreganger 2 a
(see 4 d); iron-yellow, a bright yellow pigment prepared from oxide of iron; Mars yellow. See
also Iron Age (2), etc.

   1888 Jrnl. R. Miscrosc. Soc. 786 Bacteria which assume a rust-coloured hue were denominated
*iron-bacteria by Ehrenberg.    Ibid., The oxidizing power of the cells of iron-bacteria must be
extremely great.    1919 D. Ellis (title) Iron bacteria.    1945 Science 23 Nov. 533/1 It seems
unreasonable‥to conclude that an organism is an iron bacterium or that it is developing as an
iron bacterium unless there are far greater quantities of ferric hydrate than cell substance in the
accumulated materials resulting from bacterial growth.    1955 K. V. Thimann Life of Bacteria
xxi. 598 The iron bacteria are of two types, unicellular and multicellular.

   1946 Science 11 Oct. 340/1 (heading) An *iron-binding component in human blood plasma.
1949 Arch. Biochem. XX. 170 (heading) Carbon dioxide and oxygen in complex formation with
iron and siderophilin, the iron-binding component of human plasma.    Ibid. 172 (heading) On the
mode of iron binding by siderophilin.    1970 Clin. Chem. XVI. 148/1 An automated method has
been developed for determining serum iron-binding capacity.

   1902 Encycl. Brit. XXVII. 564/1 *Iron Buff is produced by impregnating the cotton with a
solution of ferrous sulphate, squeezing, passing into sodium hydrate or carbonate solution, and
finally exposing to air.    1925 S. R. & E. R. Trotman Bleaching, Dyeing & Chem. Technol.
Textile Fibres xxxiii. 517 Iron buffs are fast to light, washing, and alkalis, but are sensitive to
acids.    1971 R. J. Adrosko Nat. Dyes & Home Dyeing 49 While one might deduce correctly that
iron buff would not necessarily produce a lively color, it was expected to last for the life of the
textile.

   1825 J. Nicholson Operat. Mechanic 617 Detached ornaments‥fixed upon the ceiling, &c.
with white-lead, or with the composition known by the name of *iron-cement.

   1772 Fletcher Logica Genev. 103 Uncovering the two *iron-clay feet of your great image.

   1855 Hewitt Anc. Armour I. 238 Beneath the‥chain-mail was worn a coif of softer material, to
mitigate the roughness of the *iron-cloth.

   1923 Biochem. Jrnl. XVII. 205 The result was that the symptoms and effects of *iron
deficiency as described appeared in the pigs.    1929 Trans. & Proc. N.Z. Inst. Mar. 51 The
theory‥that iron deficiency in the pasture was the cause of ‘Bush Sickness’, was finally adopted.
1956 Nature 18 Jan. 336/1 Metal-induced iron-deficiency in crop plants.    1971 Brit. Med. Bull.
XXVII. 6/2 The detection of iron deficiency anaemia by measuring the haemoglobin content of
the blood.    Ibid. 32/1 Iron deficiency is believed to be common in Great Britain in adult women
of all ages.

   1932 Biol. Abstr. VI. 792/1 ‘Salt sick’ of cattle on certain *iron-deficient sandy and residual
soils has proved to be a nutritional anemia due to deficiency of Fe, or of Fe and Cu in the forage
crops.    1956 Nature 14 Jan. 95/1 In iron-deficient plants there is observed an increase of the
soluble forms of nitrogen, with a simultaneous decrease of its protein forms.

   1846 Amer. Jrnl. Sci. & Arts II. 385 We find in the weight of the two *iron-falls (Croatia, 1752,
and Tennessee, 1835) as set off against that of all the stones‥, a ratio approximating that of one
(for irons) to twenty (for stones).    1868 Lockyer Elem. Astron. §315 Meteors commonly so
called, bolides, stone-falls and ironfalls.

   1669 Dryden Tyrannic Love v. i. Wks. 1883 III. 454, I'll try if she be wholly *iron⁓free If not
by sword, then she shall die by fire.    1896 Albutt's Syst. Med. I. 196 All these pigments are iron-
free.

   1840 Sydney Gaz. 8 Feb. in Stewart & Keesing Old Bush Songs (1957) 29 I'll tell the Mahers,
MacNamaras and McCartys All about *iron gangs and road parties.    1848 H. W. Haygarth
Recoll. Bush Life Austral. iv. 35 Had escaped with one or two others from his ‘iron gang’.
1945 Baker Austral. Lang. ii. 44 A bullock wagon taking supplies to men in an iron gang.

   1894 Electrician 14 Dec. 190/2 In the case of certain transformers specially tested for the
purpose no time increase in the *iron loss takes place.    1931 A. W. Hirst Direct Current
Machine Design vi. 106 (heading) Armature iron losses.    1958 E. H. Frost-Smith Theory &
Design Magnetic Amplifiers xiii. 366 Excessive iron losses cause reduced gain.

   1826 W. E. Andrews Exam. Fox's Cal. Prot. Saints 262 Fox says, this Woodman was an *iron-
maker.    1875 Whitney Life Lang. ix. 155 The iron-maker‥has occasion every day to say many
things which would not be understood by a man of any of the other classes.

   1890 Daily News 17 Feb. 2/6 If the miners strike, *ironmaking will be stopped.

   1559 in Cecil Papers (H.M.C.) I. 164 Now there are *iron-mills English iron is sold at 9l.
1581 Act 23 Eliz. c. 5 Preamble, The late Erection of sundry Iron-Mills in divers Places of this
Realm.    1632 Shirley Ball ii. ii, How do the fens? Goes the draining forward, and your iron
mills?

   1838 Boston (Mass.) Weekly Mag. 24 Nov. 91/1 Having visited the *Iron Mountain in
Missouri‥I am happy to add my testimony‥respecting the remarkable deposites of iron ores.
1846 Sci. Amer. 12 Dec. 90/1 The new blast furnace at the iron mountain is again in blast.    1887
Encycl. Brit. XXII. 638/2 [Sumatra]. Iron is not unfrequent, and magnetic iron is obtained at the
‘Iron Mountain’ near Fort van der Capellen.    1969 Times 21 Nov. 27/3 The most poignant part
of the trip was a visit to Hamersley [in Western Australia] to see Mount Tom Price, the ‘iron
mountain’.

   1851 D. Wilson Preh. Ann. (1863) II. iii. iv. 116 During this era to which the name of *Iron-
Period is applied.    1874 Boutell Arms & Arm. i. 3 The third or ‘Iron Period’, when bronze
generally was superseded by iron.

   1892 *Iron play [see putting vbl. n.2 1].    1973 Country Life 21 June 1806/3 An historic
exhibition of iron play by a master of the game [sc. golf].
   1909 Westm. Gaz. 22 Feb. 12/2 He was also a most accomplished *iron player.

   1876 Voyle & Stevenson Mil. Dict. (ed. 3) 20/2 The ordinary *iron rations for two days should
be 2 lbs. preserved meat and 2 lbs. biscuits, supplemented in such manner as circumstances
admit.    1896 Farmer & Henley Slang IV. 16/1 Iron-rations (nautical), tinned meat; specifically
boiled salt-beef.    1915 ‘I. Hay’ First Hundred Thousand xvi. 215 A haversack, occupied by his
‘iron ration’— an emergency meal of the tinned variety, which must never on any account be
opened except by order of the C.O.    1918 E. S. Farrow Dict. Mil. Terms 318 Fritz is getting his
iron rations.    1925 Fraser & Gibbons Soldier & Sailor Words 128 ‘Iron rations’ was in the War
also a colloquial expression in speaking of a hot shell-fire, e.g., ‘Jerry is letting them have it, lots
of iron rations flying about!’    1951 L. MacNeice tr. Goethe's Faust i. 61 O believe me, who have
been chewing These iron rations many a thousand year.    1970 R. Lowell Notebk. 235 The new
painting has to live on iron rations.    1973 Daily Tel. 25 Apr. 36/6 When the boys left on their
expedition they took with them only one day's supply of food, and intended to pick up more
provisions during their journey. They‥included in their packs ‘iron rations’ of chocolate, raisins
and Kendal mint cake.

   1909 Westm. Gaz. 28 May 12/3 Maxwell‥had made a splendid *iron shot.

   1877 Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 4 Leaving *iron-sponge in the ore, which would
greatly complicate the subsequent treatment.

   1880 Spon's Encycl. Manuf. I. 700 (Coffee) A minute fungus named Depazea maculosa, which
causes the so-called ‘*iron stain’, circular or elliptical blotches of an ochreish-yellow colour.

   1882 Rosa Mulholland 4 Little Mischiefs xiii. 158 Last of all came the hot iron, with a little
*iron-stand to hold it.

   1860 Weale Dict. Terms, *Iron yellow, jaune de fer, or jaune de Mars, etc., is a bright iron
ochre, prepared artificially, of the nature of sienna earth.

b.15.b Esp. in names of chemical compounds and minerals; as iron carbide, iron chloride, iron
iodide, iron salts, iron sulphate, etc. (where ferric and ferrous, q.v., or the forms carbide of iron,
etc., are more usual); iron-clay, same as clay ironstone (see clay n. 9); iron-flint, a name for
ferruginous quartz; iron-glance, specular iron-ore (see glance n.2); iron-monticellite [tr. G.
eisenmonticellit (C. Doelter Handb. d. Mineralchem. (1914) II. i. 499)], a silicate of calcium and
iron, CaFeSiO4, analogous to monticellite, found as a constituent of slag and more recently as a
natural mineral (kirschsteinite); iron pan (see quot. and pan n., and cf. hard-pan); iron pyrites,
native bisulphuret of iron (see pyrites). See also iron alum, ironstone, etc.

   1890 Sir F. A. Abel Pres. Addr. Brit. Assoc., The elimination, within the mass, of carbon as an
*iron-carbide perfectly stable at low temperatures.

   1877 Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 397 To repair unavoidable losses in the *iron-chloride
of the bath.
   1811 Pinkerton Petral. II. 49 The eisenkiesel, or *iron-flint of the Germans, is only found in
veins.    1843 Portlock Geol. 226 Silicate of Iron‥occurs associated with Iron-flint at Tullybrick,
Ballynascreen.

   1805–17 R. Jameson Char. Min. (ed. 3) 256 Dissimilar streak, as in specular iron-ore, or *iron-
glance.    1883 A. H. Church Precious Stones vii. 88 Black hæmatite is an oxide of iron occurring
under several common names, as specular iron ore, iron glance, and micaceous iron ore.

   1843 Portlock Geol. 225 Micaceous Iron Ore‥associated with *Iron Jasper, and slightly
titaniferous.

   1937 Mineral. Mag. XXIV. 613 *Iron-monticellite.    1950 Jrnl. Amer. Ceramic Soc. XXXIII.
164/2 Iron-monticellite (CaFeSiO4) is a compound that forms an unbroken series of solid
solutions with fayalite (Fe2SiO4).    1957 Mineral. Mag. XXXI. 698 (heading) Kirschsteinite, a
natural analogue to synthetic iron monticellite, from the Belgian Congo.

   1840 Outl. Flemish Husbandry in Brit. Husbandry III. ii. ii. 12 Between the sand and the loam,
an indurated crust of earth cemented by carbonate of iron, which is well known to all improvers
of poor sands by the name of the *iron pan.    1847 Nat. Cycl. II. 913 A loose sandy surface soil,
beneath which is an impervious stratum, called the iron pan, formed by the deposition of iron
particles from the sand.    1949 Antiquity XXIII. 35 A thick layer of the same blue clay‥was
incorporated in the body of the cairn between two layers of stones: it had been trampled down
and iron-pan had formed on it.    1961 Listener 12 Oct. 559/1 The soil is a ‘podsol’, with its
contrasting dark, humic, white-leached, and iron-pan layers.

   1805–17 R. Jameson Char. Min. (ed. 3) 110 The convexity is parallel with the sides, as in
*iron-pyrites.    1853 W. Gregory Inorg. Chem. (ed. 3) 216 Iron Pyrites,‥a very abundant
mineral, of a yellow colour and metallic lustre, crystallising in cubes or octahedrons.

   1879 St. George's Hosp. Rep. IX. 43 Zinc sulphate in progressive doses, with *iron sulphate.

mēce
BT
mēce, es; m. A sword, falchion, blade :-- Mēce machera, Hpt. Gl. 470, 44: 424, 30: Wrt. Voc. ii. 54, 47:
mucro, 114, 35. Mēcha aciem gladii, vim gladii, 98, 36. Mēche frameam, Ps. Spl. T. 16, 14. Mēces ecge,
Beo. Th. 3628; B. 1812. Mid āwendenlīcum mēce romphæa versatili vel volubili ancipiti, utraque parte
acutus, Hpt. Gl. 433, 70. Slōh fāgum mēce, Judth. 10; Thw. 23, 4; Jud. 204. Scīrne mēce a bright blade,
Exon. 79 a; Th. 297, 8; Crä. 65. Heardne mēce, Byrht. Th. 136, 47; By. 167. Mēcea gemānan, Chr. 937;
Erl. 114, 6; Æðelst. 40. Mēcum mylenscearpan, Erl. 112, 24; Æðelst. 24. [Laym. mæche: Goth. mēki
(acc.): O. Sax. māki: Icel. mækir.]

BTs
mēce. Add: v. sige-mēce.
CH
mēce m. sword, blade. [Goth, tnēki]

MED

m che (n.) Also mæche; pl. dat. mechen, machen.[OE; cp. A m ce.] A sword.

A sword.

c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   178:  Þar Turnus feol, mid mechen to-heawen.  c1275(?
a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   7495:  He sloh þer an hundred of ahtere monnen, þe feond mid his
mæche.  c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   29965:  Anglisce & Sexisce seouentene þusend
mid machen weoren to-heowen.

OED

secg
BT
secg, e ; f. A sword :--Wit sculon secge ofersettan, gif hē gesēcean dear wīg ofer wǣpen, Beo. Th. 1372 ;
B. 684. Secgum ofslegene, Cd. Th. 120, 27 ; Gen. 2001. [Cf. Icel. ben-sægr as a name for the sword.] Cf.
secg sedge, and sagu; and see secg-hwæt, -plega.

BTS

CH

MED

OED
Forms: 1 secg, 3 sæg, 3–4 (6) seg, 3–6 segge, 4–6 sege, 4 segg, (seegge, 5 seege, seghe, seige), 6
sedge.
[OE. {sęcg} = OS. segg, ON. segg-r:—OTeut. *sagjo-z.]

A man. (In the 16th c. only contemptuous.)

   Beowulf 208 (Gr.) Secg wisade, laᴁucræftiᴁ mon, land⁓ᴁemyrcu.    Ibid. 633 Þa ic on holm
ᴁestah, sæbat ᴁesæt mid minra secga ᴁedriht.    c 1205 Lay. 7991 Heo ledden in heore scipen‥
moni forhfulne sæg sare iwunded.    Ibid. 5109 Þer weore segge songe [c 1275 gleomenne
songe].    Ibid. 20854 Þene siȝeð him to segges vnder beorȝen.    1340–70 Alex. & Dind. 165 Of
þe seggus þat he sai bi-ȝonde þe side stronde.    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xx. 333 ‘I am a surgien’,
seide þe segge ‘and salues can make’.    a 1400 Morte Arth. 1574, I had leuer see hym synke one
the salte strandez, Than the seegge ware seke, that es so sore woundede.    c 1470 Henry Wallace
iii. 53 Robert Boid, quhilk wald no langar bide Vndir thrillage of segis of Ingland.    c 1475 Rauf
Coilȝear 713 Thair was seruit in that saill Seigis semelie.    1508 Dunbar Flyting 13 For and I flyt
sum sege for schame sould sink.    15‥ Scot. Field 113 in Chetham Soc. Misc. II, Then sumoned
he his sedges, in sondry places.    1557 N. Grimalde Death Zoroas 98 in Tottel's Misc. (Arb.) 122
Wherwith a hole route came of souldiours stern, And all in peeces hewed the silly seg.    1567
Drant Horace, A.P. B vij, Through this and such the sillie segge lay plasde in puddle still.    Ibid.,
Ep. i. ii. C iij, Duke Nestor, sillie carkinge segge.

sweord
BT
sweord, swurd, swyrd, es; n. A sword:--Sweord framea, Wrt. Voc. ii. 36, 11. Sweorde mucrone,
sweordum mucronibus, sweord macheram, 54, 33-36. Sweord gladius vel machera vel spata vel framea
vel pugio, i. 35, 7. Litel sweord sica, 13. Hiltleās sweord ensis, 33. Swurdes ord mucro, 15. Sweordes
sceāð classendis, 34, 29. Swyrdes gyrdei baltheus, 40, 58. Ðæt ūs cwealm on ne becume ne swurdes ecg
ne occidat nos pestis aut gladius, Ex. 5, 4. Blōtan mid sweordes ecge, Cd. Th. 173, 6; Gen. 2857. Ðurh
sweordes bite gedǣlan feorh wið flǣsce, Apstls. Kmbl. 68; Ap. 34. Hig feallaþ on swurdes (sweordes,
MS. A.: suordes, Lind.: swordana, Rush.) ecge cadent in ore gladii, Lk. Skt. 21, 24. Standan mid
ātogenum swurde, Jos. 5, 13. Hēr synt twā swurd (sweord, MS. A.: suordas, Lind.: sworde, Rush.) ecce
gladii duo, Lk. Skt. 22, 38. Sweorda gelāc the play of swords, battle, Beo. Th. 2084; B. 1040. Sweorda
lāfe those whom the sword had spared, 5865; B. 2936. ¶ The high esteem in which good swords were held
in old times is marked in many ways. Their forging is in many legends said to be the work of other than
human hands; so the sword which Beowulf seizes in Grendel's nome is 'eald sweord eotenisc (cf. eald
sweord eācen, 3330; B. 1663), ecgum dyhtig, . . . giganta geweorc,' Beo. Th. 3120-9; B. 1558-62; and
twice besides occurs the phrase 'eald sweord eotonisc,' 5225; B. 2616: 5950; B. 2979; see also 'enta
ǣrgeweorc' applied to the workmanship of a sword, 3362; B. 1679. Cf. too the forging of Sigurd's sword
in the Völsunga Saga. They are precious heirlooms, handed down through many years (v. epithet eald
above); so Beowulf speaks of his sword as 'eald lāf,' Beo. Th. 2981; B. 1488, and the same phrase is used
of the @bt_b0950 sword wielded by one of his followers in the chief's defence, 1595; B. 795. In reference
to the sword given by Beowulf to the Dane who had guarded his ship, it is said that the recipient 'syððan
wæs on meodobence mādme ðȳ weorðra, yrfelāfe,' 3810; B. 1903; another sword is called 'Hrēdles lāf,'
and of it is said 'næs mid Geātum sincmāðþum sēlra on sweordes hād,' 4389-93; B. 2191-3; and later on
mention is made of 'gomel swyrd, Eānmundes lāf,' 5216; B. 2611; Hrunting, the sword which is lent to
Beowulf, is 'ān ealdgestreōna,' 2921; B. 1458. So, too, Byrhtnoth tells the Danes who demand tribute of
him, that the tribute will take the form of 'ealde swurd,' used with unpleasant effect upon the invaders. The
same point may be illustrated from other than poetical sources. Thus in Alfred's will it is said that he
leaves 'Æþerēde ealdormenn ān sweord on hundteōntigum mancusum,' Chart. Th. 489, 32; in another will
is the passage 'Freoðomunde fōe tō mīnum sweorde, and āgefe ðēræt feōwer ðūsenda,' 471, 23; another
testator bequeathes his sword 'mid ðam sylfrenan hylte and ðone gyldenan fetels,' 558, 10; and another
mentions the sword 'ðat Eādmund king mē selde on hund&dash-uncertain;tuelftian mancusas goldes and
fōur pund silueres on ðan fetelse,' 505, 28. Indeed the sword is often mentioned in wills. The importance
of the sword is further marked by its receiving a name. The sword with which Beowulf is armed for his
attack on Grendel's mother is named Hrunting, and to the praise of this weapon the poet devotes several
lines, Beo. Th. 2914-33; B. 1455-64; at a later period it is with 'Nægling . . . gomol and grǣgmmǣl' that he
fights, 5354; B. 2680. See, too, Wald. 4; Vald. 1, 3. And elsewhere the same point may be noted, e. g. in
the Nibelungenlied. 'daz Nibelunges swert. . . Palmunc was genant;' and this weapon plays a part in the
drama to the last scene. In Scandinavian story there is Hākon's sword 'kvernbītr,' which king Athelstan
gave him, and Egill has his sword that he called 'Naðr.' See, too, the story of the Cid and the two swords,
Colada and Tizona, which he gave to his sons-in-law, the Infantes of Carrion, and which he claimed from
them after their unworthy treatment of their wives, Chronica del Cid, c. cclii. Of the value of the sword
and of the decoration bestowed upon it, of the shape or colouring, of the make, many epithets and phrases
speak. In the Gnomic verses it is said, 'Gold gerīseþ on guman sweorde,' Exon. Th. 341, 15; Gn. Ex. 126;
and 'māðm in healle, goldhilted sweord' is mentioned, 437, 27; Rä. 56, 14. See, too, the passages quoted
under seolfor-hilt, -hilted. In the dragon's hoard are 'dȳre swyrd,' Beo. Th. 6089; B. 3048: the sword which
Beowulf seized in Grendel's retreat was golden-hilted, 3358; B. 1677, and 'wæs on ðǣm scennum scīran
goldes þurh rūnstafas gesǣd, hwam ðæt sweord geworht, īrena cyst, ǣrest wǣre, wreoþenhilt and
wyrmfāh,' 3390-3400; B. 1694-8. Beowulf lays aside his 'hyrsted sweord, īrena cyst,' Beo. Th. 1349; B.
672: he gives a sword 'bunden golde,' 3805; B. 1901: his own sword is 'fāh and fǣted,' 5395; B. 2700.
Byrhtnoth's sword is 'fealohilte,' Byrht. Th. 136, 45; By. 166; and 'gerēnod,' 35; By. 161. Beowulf's
Nægling is 'grǣgmǣl,' Beo. Th. 5357; B. 2681: the swords of the Hebrews are 'scīrmǣled,' Judth. Thw. 24,
38; Jud. 230: other swords are 'hring-mǣled,' Cd. Th. 120, 10; Gen. 1992: Abraham girds himself 'grǣgan
sweorde,' 173, 22; Gen. 2865: the Hebrews fight 'fāgum sweordum,' Judth. Thw. 24, 18; Jud. 194: 25, 17;
Jud. 264. The sword is 'brād,' 26, 9; Jud. 318: Byrht. Th. 132, 12; By. 15: brād and brūnecg, 136, 38; By.
163: it is 'gōd,' 138, 58; By. 237; 'heard,' Beo. Th. 5966; B. 2987: 5269; B. 2638: Exon. Th. 325, 32; Vīd.
120: 'heardecg,' Beo. Th. 2581; B. 1288: 'ecgum dyhtig,' 2578; B. 1287: Cd. Th. 120, 11; Gen. 1993:
'ecgum gecost,' Judth. Thw. 34, 39; Jud. 231: stȳled, Exon. Th. 42, 28; Cri. 679. For some account of old
swords, see Wright's The Celt, The Roman, and the Saxon, pp. 404-6, and Worsaae's Antiquities: see also
Grmm. Gesch. D. S. p. 12. [O. Sax. O. Frs. swerd: O. H. Ger. swert: Icel. sverð.] v. gūð-, māl-, māðum-,
stæf-, wǣg-sweord.

BTS
sweord. Add :-- Mīne witan habbað ætre[ht] Ecgferðe ealle his āre þurh  swyrd þe him on hype hangode
ðā hē ādranc, Cht. Th. 208, 22. And þeāh hē geþeō  hē hæbbe helm and byrnan and golde fǣted sweord
(ofergyldene sweord, 22), gif hē  land nafað, hē bið ceorl swāþeāh, Ll. Th. i. 188, 9. v. birn- (byrn-),
hilt-sweord.

CH

MED
swerde
1.

(a) A bladed weapon designed for cutting and thrusting, a sword; also fig. & in fig. context;
pleien at the ~ and bokeler, to fence; (b) death by the sword; don to (the) ~, to put (sb.) to the
sword, kill with a sword, execute; dreden the ~ and the spere, dread a violent death; shulen
(wenden, yede) to the ~, ben taken in-to ~, be put to the sword, suffer death by the sword; (c) in
cpds., combs., & phrases: ~ belt (girdel), a sword belt, baldric; ~ blade, sword(es egge, a sword
blade; sword(es hilte, ~ hondel, a sword hilt; ~ honde, the hand that wields a sword; ~ lenge,
sword(es lengthe, a distance equal to the length of a sword; ~ man, q.v.; swordes ord, the point
of a sword; ~ pleiere, a sword fighter, gladiator; ~ (and bokeler) pleiinge, a sword fight,
gladiatorial combat; sword(es shethe, the sheath of a sword; arming ~, a battle sword; bastard
~, ?an inferior or irregularly made sword; ?a sword of unusual size; bredling ~, a sword used
with the flat side; brod ~, a broad-bladed sword [see also brod adj. 4.(f)]; long ~, a long-bladed
sword [see also long adj.(1) 3.(a)]; short ~, a short-bladed sword [see also short adj. 1.(d)];
twein-bitinge (-egged) ~, two-bitinge (-egged) ~, ~ two-egged (-pointed), a sword with two
cutting edges (points) [see also two num. 1c.(a)]; two-honde ~, a sword wielded with two hands
[see two num. 1c.(d)]; (d) a sword used as a symbol of honor or authority, something upon which
oaths are sworn, a prize for a wrestling match, etc.; also fig. [quot. 1340, 2nd]; also, a sword not
intended or made for use as a weapon, a ceremonial sword; a sword or the blade of a sword used
in divination or necromancy; ~ berere, a sword-bearer, esp. the bearer of a mayor's sword of
office; ~ brother, a man bound to another by oaths sworn on a sword, a sworn brother; (e) a
representation of a sword in a painting or on a seal; (f) cook. ?a broach, spit.

(a)    a1121 Peterb.Chron.(LdMisc 636)   an.656:  Gif hwa þis to brekeþ æniþing, Sancte Petre
mid his sweord him adylige.

a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)   40/22:  Ic ofslea þysne draca bute swurde [OE swurde] &
stafe.
a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)   55/23:  He awænde his swurd in þære scæðe.
c1175(?OE) HRood (Bod 343)   28/26:  He mid his sweorde hire þet heafod of asloh.
?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   14675:  Abraham..droh hiss swerd off shæþe.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   10676:  Bruttes..leiden o þan Sæxen læ3en..mid
heore..sweoreden.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   14000:  Þa quene ich al to-snaðde mid..mine sweorede.
c1225(?c1200) St.Kath.(1) (Roy 17.A.27)   109/968:  Ich schal schawin hu mi sweord [Bod:
sweort; Tit: sword] bite iþi swire.
c1250 *St.Marg.(2) (Trin-C B.14.39)   256:  He bed..bringen hire of liue, wid swerde oþer wid
spere.
c1300(?c1225) Horn (Cmb Gg.4.27)   41/712:  Bute þu flitte, Wiþ swerde [vr. suert] ihc þe
anhitte.
c1325(c1300) Glo.Chron.A (Clg A.11)   3615:  Mid is suerd he was igurd.
c1330(?a1300) Arth.& M.(Auch)   8117:  Our wi3tlinges..On þe heþen wiþ swordes losten.
(1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   43/25:  Hi dra3eþ oþre to þe dyaþe, oþer be zuorde oþer be uenym.
c1350 Cmb.Ee.4.20.Nominale (Cmb Ee.4.20)   549:  Arblastre, bowe, arue, sworde [F espeie].
a1375 WPal.(KC 13)   1256:  Þe duk..3ald up his swerd to save..his live.
(c1387-95) Chaucer CT.Prol.(Manly-Rickert)   A.558:  A swerd and a bokeler bar he by his
syde.
(a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)   73b/a:  A ri3tful loord..drawiþ his swerd a3enst malice and
puttiþ forþ his schilde of ri3twisnes.
a1400(a1325) Cursor (Vsp A.3)   15721:  Sper and suerd [Frf: squorde; Göt: surd] and mace þai
bring And wapens oþer maa.
?a1425(a1415) Wycl.Lantern (Hrl 2324)   33/22:  Summe..taken þe material swerid, & ben
made mynystris of Cristis godhed.
c1425(a1420) Lydg. TB (Aug A.4)   prol.172:  Ner her writyng..memorial, Dethe with his
swerde schulde haue slayn al.
a1450(?c1421) Lydg. ST (Arun 119)   274:  Mor is Fortunat Of Mercurye þe..harpe, Than Mars
swerd.
a1425(c1333-52) Minot Poems (Glb E.9)   27/13:  3e spared noght with swerd ne spere To stik
þam.
?a1425(c1380) Chaucer Bo.(Benson-Robinson)   1.pr.4.261:  I hadde ben accused that I
wolde..straungle preestis with wykkid sweerd [L gladio].
c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)   2055:  Oure soueraygne sulde be..don of dawez with
dynttez of swreddez [read: swerddez].
(1449) Metham AC (Gar 141)   1452:  With huge strokys hys sqwerd on the skalys gan glyde.
(1449) Metham AC (Gar 141)   1639:  Hys qwerd [read: sqwerd] vndyr hys arme he bare for
caser off aduersyte.
a1450 PNoster R.Hermit (Westm-S 3)   14/15:  Armed folk..toward hym comeþ wiþ speres &
swerdes & oþer eggid wepenes.
c1450 Med.Bk.(2) (Add 33996)   186:  Þese balles..schulle knytte veynes..þat beþ cutte wyþ
swert [vr. egge tool] or knyf.
?c1475 *Cath.Angl.(Add 15562)   123b:  To Strike with A swrde [?read: swerde]: gladiare.
c1484(a1475) Caritate SSecr.(Tak 38)   196/24:  Lete þi gentyllis haue sondri manir of fyghtyng
wepyn, sum sperys, and sum crosbowys..and sum with sqwerdys to renne amonge þe osste.
a1500(?a1325) Otuel & R (Fil)   960:  The sarisins hym throng with sperys and swyrdys strong.
a1500(a1400) Libeaus (Clg A.2)   1945:  Þoru3 þat swordes dent Myn hond Y haue y-schent.
a1500(?a1400) Firumb.(2) (Fil)   612:  Fond We ous..with oure gode sverdys to make here sydes
blede.
a1500 MSerm.Mol.(Adv 19.3.1)   83:  Owt of ther balys come iiij and xxte oxon playng at the
sword and bokelar.
a1500 Siege Jerus.(2) (Brog 2.1)   87/522:  Archeles..slowe hymeselfe wyth his ovn sorde.
c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   10905:  The wemyn..With swappis of hor swordes swelt
mony knightes.

(b)    (a1382) WBible(1) (Bod 959)   1 Esd.9.7:  Wee ben taken..in to swerd [L gladium] & in to
caitifte.

?a1400(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.2 (Petyt 511)   p.47:  A gode erle..was don to þe suerd.
c1400(?a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)   147:  Philippe..haueþ ydon to þe swerde Þem þat nolden
myd hym acorde.
c1400(?a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)   2698:  Alle hij shulden to þe swerde.
c1400(?a1300) KAlex.(LdMisc 622)   2835:  Þe quyke 3ede to þe swerde.
?a1425(?a1350) Castleford Chron.(Göt Hist 740)   24262:  Alle he þam dide to swerde and
spere.
?a1425(c1380) Chaucer Bo.(Benson-Robinson)   2.pr.5.199:  Thow..dredest..the swerd and the
spere.
a1450(a1338) Mannyng Chron.Pt.1 (Lamb 131)   15365:  Alle were þey don to swerd.
?a1450(a1400) Siege Jerus.(1) (LdMisc 656)   317:  Many..to þe swerd 3ede [vr. deth wente].
c1470 Bible F.(Cleve-W q091.92-C468)   88/19:  Alle the Iuwes..went to the swerd and to
slaughtir.

(c)    a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)   107/4:  Ic do þæt he feallð under swurdes ecge.

?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)   6639:  He..wollde himm..Wiþþ swerdess egge cwellenn.

c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   10687:  His brode swærd he up ahof.
a1225(?a1200) Trin.Hom.(Trin-C B.14.52)   61:  Gode..wile smite mid bredlinge swuerde.
c1225(OE) Wor.Aelfric Gloss.(Wor F.174)   549/35:  Mucro: swerdes ord.
a1250 Ancr.(Nero A.14)   26/18:  Men weorreð..mid sweordes egge.
c1300(?c1225) Horn (Cmb Gg.4.27)   83/1416:  Fikenhild a3en hire pelte Wiþ his swerdes hilte.
a1325 Gloss.Bibbesw.(Arun 220)   p.165:  Delacez ta renge [glossed:] thi swerd-girdel [vr.
swerdbelt].
c1330(?a1300) Arth.& M.(Auch)   7465:  Þe oþer to þe grounde bare Wiþ dint of spere and of
swerde-egge.
(a1382) WBible(1) (Bod 959)   Ecclus.39.36:  Alle þese to veniaunce ben formed: teeþ of bestis
& scorpiouns & serpentis & twei bitinge [vr. two bitende] swerd [L romphæa].
(c1384) WBible(1) (Dc 369(2))   Heb.4.12:  The word of God is..more able for to perse than al
tweyne eggid swerd [L omni gladio ancipiti].
(c1385) Chaucer CT.Kn.(Manly-Rickert)   A.2646:  Emetrius..Is born out of his sadel a swerdes
[vr. swerd] lengthe.
(a1387) Trev. Higd.(StJ-C H.1)   5.267:  Þe Saxons foughte wiþ longe swerdes [vr. sweordes]
and axes.
(c1390) Chaucer CT.Th.(Manly-Rickert)   B.2066:  Hise iambeux were of quyrboily, His
swerdes [vr. swerd] shethe of yuory.
c1410(1399) Will Folkyngham in Yks.Wr.2 (UC 97)   449:  I 3eue to William Flete..myn
armynge sworde of Burdeux.
(1409) Acc.Iron Master in EHR 14   521:  Soluta Johanni Felanceby pro ii swerdblad pro les
belowes, ii d.
(1415) Reg.Chichele in Cant.Yk.S.42 (Lamb 69)   48:  I wil..that..a short shwrd [?read:
swerd]..be delivered unto hym.
(1415) Reg.Chichele in Cant.Yk.S.42 (Lamb 69)   49:  Y wil..þat John Cheyne..have þe short
armyn swerd harnaised with gold.
(1418) EEWills   35/3:  I bequethe to Symond..my Bastard Swerd.
?a1425 Mandev.(2) (Eg 1982)   123/13:  Þe gentils hase schorte swerdez scharpe on þe ta syde.
c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)   1126:  A swerde-lenghe within þe swarthe he swappez.
c1440(?a1400) Morte Arth.(1) (Thrn)   4244:  He..Swappes of þe swerde-hande.
a1450(c1410) Lovel. Grail (Corp-C 80)   28.417:  Nethir the sword hondel ne pomel Ne Cowde
he declaren.
c1450 Trin-C.LEDict.(Trin-C O.5.4)   586/35:  Gladiatura: a swerdpleyynge, or bokeler
pleyynge.
(1453) Proc.Privy C.  6.129:  The seid parties shuld do that bataill with certen weppens..with
gleyve, short sword, dagger & with axe instede of longe sword.
(1456) Invent.Armory in Archaeol.16   124:  A Scottyssh swerde hylte and pomell.
(a1470) Malory Wks.(Win-C)   203/15:  He kutte into the swarffe a large swerde-length and
more.
(1472) Paston   1.449:  I gaffe hym a fayre armyng sworde.
?c1475 *Cath.Angl.(Add 15562)   123b:  A Swerde & bukiller playing: gladiatura.
a1500(?c1425) Spec.Sacer.(Add 36791)   130/2:  Dacian commaundid to be made a whele of
bras and swerdes two-eggid or two-poyntid for to be sette alle abowte it.
a1500 Mayer Nominale (Mayer)   696/37:  Gladiator: a swerdplaer.

(d)    c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   2068:  Ich wulle..faren to stal-fehte to-3ene þene
swerd broþeren þe beiene beoh for-sworene.

c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   4443:  Þat ich þe wullen swerien uppen mine sweorden.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   15235:  He bigon þene swike-dom uppen his sweord-
broðenen [read: sweord-broðeren].
(1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   43/13:  To þise zenne belongeþ þe zenne of ham þet..makeþ þe
enchauntemens and makeþ to loky ine þe zuord oþer ine þe nayle of þe þoume uor to of-take þe
þyeues.
(1340) Ayenb.(Arun 57)   168/27:  Alle þe uirtues yerneþ ac þis wynþ þet zuord.
(c1384) WBible(1) (Dc 369(2))   Rom.13.4:  He [ruler] berith the swerd, for he is the mynistre of
God.
(c1390) Chaucer CT.Pars.(Manly-Rickert)   I.603:  Lat vs go now to..coniuracioun, as
doon..nygromanciens..in a bright swerd [vr. swerdis blade].
a1400(c1303) Mannyng HS (Hrl 1701)   351:  3yf you yn swerd..Any chylde madyst loke
þeryn..wycchecraft men clepyn hyt.
a1400(c1303) Mannyng HS (Hrl 1701)   991:  3yf þou euer settyst swerde eyþer ryng For to
gadyr a wrastlyng, Þe halyday þou holdest noght.
c1400(a1376) PPl.A(1) (Trin-C R.3.14)   1.97:  Dauid..Made hem to swere on his swerd.
a1422 Gild St.Geo.Nrw.(Rwl D.913)   446:  Thoo..schul chesen..a man to bere his swerd.
a1425 *Medulla (Stnh A.1.10)   24a/b:  Ensisfer [Hrl 1738: Ensifer]: a swyrd berere.
(1434) Proc.Privy C.  4.252:  Þe seide Tresorer and Chambleyns have delivered to þe seide
Cardynal a sweerd of goold..þe pomel of þe..sweerd is garnysed wyth..peerles.
c1436 Ipswich Domesday(2) (Add 25011)   129:  Everech son of a burgeys..render..the swerd
with which he father was sworen.
c1450(?c1425) Avow.Arth.(Tay 9)   466:  He squere on þe squrd brode.
(1453) LRed Bk.Bristol   2.204:  Johanne wille..the Baillifs, Tounclerk, Swerdeberer, and
Sargeauntis to the Mair be..at the masse.
(1463-4) RParl.  5.505b:  Provided..that..Swerdeberers to Mayers..be not comprised in this Acte.
c1475 Gregory's Chron.(Eg 1995)   233:  That yere the mayre beryd..hys scheryffe and hys
swyrdeberer.
?c1475(1429) Coron.Hen.VI (Lnsd 285)   p.146:  Swerdis there were borne, oon poyntlees and
two poyntid; The toon was a swerde of mercy, the oothir of astate.
?c1475 *Cath.Angl.(Add 15562)   123b:  A Swerde berer: Ensifer, lictor.
a1500(a1400) Ipom.(1) (Chet 8009)   5421:  On my swerd swere, Neuer me..to dere.
a1500(c1410) Dives & P.(Htrn 270)   2.230:  He beryth no sceptre..ne he beryth a swerd þat is
tokene of cruelte.
a1525(?1453) Cov.Leet Bk.  277:  [Officiariis Maioris, videlicet] le Swirdberer & le Meirs
seriant.

(e)    (c1385) Chaucer CT.Kn.(Manly-Rickert)   A.2029:  Saugh I conquest..With the sharpe

swerd ouer his heed.

a1450-a1500(1436) Libel EP (Warner)   590:  The seale..On the one syde hathe..A prince
rydynge wyth hys swerde idrawe.

(f)    a1325 Add.46919 Cook.Recipes (Add 46919)   55.55/5:  Nym sone þe musseruns, lardes

coynteliche wiþ larduns; Make as werd [?read: a swerd] vor to swerden, & soþþen aske a god
roste.

OED
[OE. {sweord} str. n. = OS., OFris. swerd, MLG. swert, MDu. swaert (Du. zwaard), OHG.,
MHG. swert (G. schwert), ON. sverð (Sw. svärd, Da. sverd):—OTeut. *swerdom.]

1. a.1.a A weapon adapted for cutting and thrusting, consisting of a handle or hilt with a cross-
guard, and a straight or curved blade with either one or two sharp edges and a sharp point (or
sometimes with blunt edges, and used only for thrusting).
   Swords are of various shapes and sizes, some with distinctive names, as broadsword, claymore,
rapier, sabre, scimitar, etc.; but, without qualification, the word is commonly understood to mean
a large weapon such as those used in warfare.

   Beowulf 2638 (Gr.) Helmas and heard sweord.    971 Blickl. Hom. 11 Anra ᴁehwylc hæfde
sweord ofer his hype.    a 1000 Fight at Finnsburg 17 (Gr.) Sigeferð and Eaha hyra sword
ᴁetuᴁon.    c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xxvi. 47 Mid swurdum & sahlum.    c 1205 Lay. 8908 Þi
mon he sæl bi-cumen‥& þat ich þe wullen swerien Uppen mine sweorden.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex.
1307 Ysaac‥bar ðe wude‥And abraham ðe fier and ðe swerd bar.    c 1275 Passion of Our Lord
200 in O.E. Misc. 43 Þo iseyh ihesu crist þat peter so dude, Put in, he seyde, þi sweord.    1297 R.
Glouc. (Rolls) 386 Corineus suerd sone brac, so strong he smote & vaste.    a 1300 Cursor M.
15721 (Cott.) Sper and suerd [Gött. surd] and mace þai bring.    Ibid. 21710 (Edin.) Mocht na
kingis suorde [Fairf. squorde] do mare.    1340 Ayenb. 48 Mid oȝene zuorde man may himzelue
sle.    c 1386 Chaucer Prol. 112 And by his syde a swerd and a bokeler.    c 1400 Destr. Troy 5741
Mony Troiens‥Thurgh swap of his sword swaltyn belyue!    1451 Lincoln Diocese Documents
50 A hole harmor of plate & my Swirde.    1534 in W. Kelly Notices Illustr. Drama (1865) 191, I
borrowyd a shorde and a bokelar, wch showrde and bokelar he allmust bothe loste.    1539 Bible
(Great) Matt. xxvi. 52 One of them which were wyth Iesus, stretched out his hande, and drue his
swearde.‥ Then sayd Iesus vnto hym: put vp thy swearde into hys sheath.    1546 J. Heywood
Prov. (1867) 63 The prouerbe saith, he that striketh with the swoorde, Shalbe strikyn with the
scaberde.    1600 Breton Pasquil's Fooles-cappe xliii, Hee that‥by his side can finely weare his
swearde.    1601 Shakes. Twel. N. v. i. 191 You drew your sword vpon me without cause.    1782
Cowper Royal George 21 His sword was in the sheath.    1847 Tennyson Princess v. 528 A
moment hand to hand, And sword to sword, and horse to horse we hung.    1851 D. Wilson Preh.
Ann. (1863) II. iv. x. 511 A fine specimen of the old Scottish two handed sword.

wǣepen
BT
wǣepen, wǣpn, es; n. I. a weapon :-- Steng oððe wǣpen clava, Wrt. Voc. ii. 20, 63. Mē sceal wǣpen
niman, ord and īren. Byrht. Th. 139, 11; By. 252. Ðis (the bridle into which the nails from the cross were
put) bið unoferswīðed wǣpen, Elen. Kmbl. 2375; El. 1189. Ǣlces wǣpnes ord mucro, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 35.
Swurdes ord oððe ōðres wǣpnes, 84, 22. Wǣpnes ecge. Cd. Th. 109, 30; Gen. 1830. Gehealdan heardne
mēce, wǣpnes wealdan, Byrht. Th. 136, 48; By. 168. Gif hē folcgemōt mid wǣpnes brȳde ārǣre, L. Alf.
pol. 38; Th. i. 86, 16. Be ðām monnum ðe heora wǣpna tō monslyhte lǣnaþ. Gif hwā his wǣpnes ōðrum
onlǣne ðæt hē mon mid ofsleā, 19; Th. i. 74, 1-4. Wǣpnes spor a wound, Exon. Th. 280, 2; Jul. 623.
Āwrītaþ hiē on his wǣpne wælnota heāp, Salm. Kmbl. 323; Sal. 161. Ic ðȳ wǣpne gebrǣd, Beo. Th. 3333;
B. 1664. Hē ðæs beran ceaflas tōtær būton ǣlcum wǣmne, Ælfc. T. Grn. 7, 16. Gif man wǣpn ābregde
ðǣr mæn drincen, L.H.E. 13; Th. i. 32, 11. Ðeāh hwā his āgen spere sette tō ōðres mannes hūses dura ...
oþþon gif man ōðer wǣpn lecge ... and hwilc man ðæt wǣpn gelæcce, L.C.S. 76; Th. i. 418, 6. Hē wǣpen
hafenade be hiltum, Beo. Th. 3151 ; B. 1573. Nolde ic sweord beran, wǣpen tō wyrme, 5031; B. 2519:
5367; B. 2687. Gif sweordhwīta ōðres monnes wǣpn tō feormunge onfō, oððe smið monnes andweorc, L.
Alf. pol. 19; Th. i. 74, 9. Sum mæg stȳled sweord, wǣpen gewyrcan, Exon. Th. 42, 29; Cri. 680. Hē
wǣpen up āhōf, bord tō gebeorge, Byrht. Th. 135. 39; By. 130. Wǣpnu arma, Ælfc. Gr. 36; Zup. 215, 15.
Wǣpna arma, wǣpna hūs armamentarium, Wrt. Voc. i. 35, 1, 2. Eorlas fornōman wǣpen wælgīfru, Exon.
Th. 292, 16; Wand. 100. Wēpen arma, Ps. Surt. 56, 5. Se hālga hēht his heorðwerod wǣpna onfōn, Cd.
Th. 123, 5; Gen. 2040. Hē ne mihte wǣpna gewealdan, Beo. Th. 3022; 6. 1509: Byrht. Th. 139, 50; By.
272. Wǣpna wyrpum, Exon. Th. 35, 28; Cri. 565. Wǣpna wundum, 119, 15; Gū. 255. Wǣpna wælslihtes,
Cd. Th. 198, 25; Exod. 328. Seō wǣpna lāf those whom the sword spared, 121, 5; Gen. 2005: 220, 20;
Dan. 74. Se helm hafelan werede ... hine worhte wǣpna smið, Beo. Th. 2908; B. 1452. Ðā fōr hē mid
eallum his folce and mid eallum his wǣpnum omnis equitatus Pharaonis, currus ejus et equites. Ex. 14,
23. Gif man mannan wǣpnum bebyreþ ðǣr ceās weorð, L. Ethb. 18; Th. i. 6, 19. Ðæt folc com mid
wǣpnum (woepnum, Lind.: wēpenu, Rush.) venit cum armis, Jn. Skt. 18, 3: Andr. Kmbl. 2140; An. 1071.
Gegearwod wǣpnum, Elen. Kmbl. 95; El. 48. Wǣpnum geweorðad, Beo. Th. 505; B. 250: 667; B. 331.
Ǣlc þing ðe orðode, hē ācwealde mid wǣpnum omne, quod spirare poterat, interfecit, Jos. 10, 40.
Wǣpmun āswebban, Apstls. Kmbl. 138; Ap. 69. Leohtum wǣpnum (leuibus armis) gegyrwan, Nar. 10,
27. Scearpum wǣpnum, Exon. Th. 385, 30; Rä. 4, 52. Mid gǣstlīcum wǣpnum, 112, 24; Gū. 148.
Gescyldend wið sceaðan wǣpnum. Andr. Kmbl. 2584; An. 1298: Exon. Th. 48, 22; Cri. 775. Hī wurpon
hyra wǣpen of dūne, Judth. Thw. 25, 33; Jud. 291. Wǣpen and gewǣdu, Beo. Th. 589; B. 292. Wāpen
healdan, mēce, gār and gōd swurd, Byrht. Th. 138, 45; By. 235. Wēpen and sceldas. arma et scuta, Ps.
Surt. 45, 10. Ealle his wǣpnu (woepeno, Lind.: wēpeno, Rush.) hē him āfyrð, Lk. Skt. ii. 22. Hē āwearp
his wǣmna, Ælfc. T. Grn. 18, 31. Hiē him ealle hiera wǣpeno āgeāfen arma traderent, Ors. 4, 13; Swt.
210, 21. Hiē wǣpna nāman arma sumunt, 1. 10; Swt. 44, 32, Nimaþ eōwre wǣpn ponat vir gladium super
femur suum, Ex. 32, 27. Gegrīp (gefōh, Ps. Th.) wǣpn (wēpen, Ps. Surt.) and scyld apprehende arma et
scutum, Ps. Spl. 34, 2. Uoepeno, Rtl. 168, 1. Ðeāh ðe hī wǣpen ne beran quamvis arma non ferant, Bd. 2,
2; S. 504, 3. Hē ða gāstlīcan wǣpnu ne mæg āberan, Basil admn. 2; Norm. 36, 27. II. membrum virile :--
Teors veretrum, teors, ðæt wǣpen vel lim calamus, Wrt. Voc. i. 283, 56. Wǣpen, gecynd (printed wepen-
gecynd; but see gecynd, II) veretrum, 44, 58. [Whiles þow art ȝonge, and þi wepne kene, wreke þe with
wyuynge, Piers P. 9, 180.] v. wǣpen-līc, -mann, wǣpned. [Goth. wēpna; pl. arma : O. Sax. wāpan : O.
Frs. wēpin: O.H. Ger. wāfan gladius, framea, telum, falx, scutum: Icel. vāpn.] v. beadu-, camp-, heoru-,
here-, hilde-, sige-, weoruld-, wīg-wǣpen.
BTS

CH

MED

w pen (n.) Also wepene, wepin, wepon(e, wepoun, wep(p)un, wepne, weppen, wappin,
wipne, (WM) weopne, (chiefly N) wapen, wapin, wapon, (late or 16th cent.) weapon, weppon,
wappon & (early) wæpen, wæpne, (infl.) wæpnen & (?error) wapping, (errors) wepe, wepned,
weppont, wenpne; pl. wepen(e)s, etc. & wep(p)en, wep(p)in, wepon, wepoun, wepne,
weppun, wopen, (chiefly N) wapen, (N) wapine, wapinnez, waipinnez, wappen, (N or early)
wapne, (late) weipin & (early) wepnen, wæpen, wæpne(n, weapne(n, wapnes, wapnen,
(SWM) wepnan, (dat.) wepnum & (?error) wappyings, (errors) wepnessis, wap(p)a.

[OE w pen, w pn, (Angl.) w pen, (Nhb.) woepn-; pl. w pen, etc. & w pnu. For forms in
w - & w - also cp. ON: cp. OI v pn. Some uninfl. forms listed as pl. may = sg. coll.]

1.

(a) An instrument employed either offensively or defensively in combat, a device designed to

injure or kill an opponent in a fight, a weapon [sometimes difficult to distinguish from (b) and
vice versa];

(b) coll. & pl. weapons; also, battle gear, military equipment, armaments, arms, weaponry; ?in
synecdoche: strife, warfare, force of arms [quot. c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut 10926]; casting
wepenes, ?military engines for casting stones or other missiles, mangonels, ballistas; egged
wepenes, weapons having blades;

(c) fig. and in fig. context: a spiritual weapon, either offensive or defensive; -- also coll. and pl.; ~
kin;

(d) any implement or object not ordinarily used to injure or kill but serviceable for offense or
defense in an attack, an improvised weapon;

(e) in selected phrases: bouten wepenes, withouten ~, unarmed; oute of ~, not dressed for battle,
engaged in nonmilitary affairs; wel preved in ~, adept at warfare, tested in combat, experienced
in fighting; with ~ in honde, armed, ready for combat; beren (welden) wepen(es, to brandish a
weapon, carry a weapon, bear arms; also, do battle, engage in combat; connen beren wepenes,
mouen beren (waggen, welden) ~, be capable of fighting, be able-bodied; haven ~ on honde, be
armed; lepen to ~, seize one's weapons hastily, hasten to combat; winnen with wepenes, engage
in battle, conduct warfare;
(f) in proverbs.

(a)    a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)  52/4:  Eft, þa þa seo halige cwen hine asænde ... þa

ferde his gast swiftlice, & mid lichamlicen wæpnen [OE wæpne] þone Godes feond ofstang.

c1150(OE) Hrl.HApul.(Hrl 6258B)  107/14:  Eac ys sæd þæt 3yf [ma]n on huntoð ran [oþþ]er
rae3an mid flane [oðð]er oþrum waepne 3e[waec]eð þæt hi willad ðas wurt eta[n] ... sona þa
flance ut adeoð ... wun[de] hælað.
c1225(OE) Wor.Aelfric Gloss.(Wor F.174)  549/36:  Mucro: swerdes ord, uel oþres wæpnes.
(c1375) Chaucer CT.Mk.(Manly-Rickert)  B.3214:  Sampson ... With outen wepne [vr. wepe]
saue hise hondes tweye ... slow and al to rente the leoun.
c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   3.304:  Alle þat bereth baslarde, brode swerde, or launce,
Axe ... or eny wepne [C vr. wypne] ellis, Shal be demed to þe deth but if he do it smythye In-to
sikul or to sithe.
c1400(?c1390) Gawain (Nero A.10)   2222:  He keuerez bi a cragge & comez of a hole,
Whyrlande out of a wro wyth a felle weppen, A denez ax nwe dy3t.
a1425(a1400) PConsc.(Glb E.9 & Hrl 4196)  1707:  Als þe body may be slayne Thurgh wapen
þat men may ordayne, Swa es þe saule slane thurgh syn.
a1425 Siege Troy(1) (LinI 150)   726:  Alisaunder ... comaundede ilk mon arme him And his
weopne wiþ him nym.
c1436 Ipswich Domesday(2) (Add 25011)   163:  3if ony in the forseid toun by malice drawyn
swerd or knyff or ony other wepene, or 3eve wounde ... or make assaute to an other ... be the
trespasour comaunded to prisoun xl dayes.
(1440) Capgr. St.Norb.(Hnt HM 55)  3225:  Whann ... sey þei a knyf whech hing be his side ...
þei asked him why That he came in with wepun þus priuyly.
c1450 Alph.Tales (Add 25719)   76/23:  A man suld giff no truste vnto his fete, bod vnto his
wapyn þat was in his hand.
a1475(a1456) Shirley Death Jas.(Add 5467)  19:  That odyus and false traitour ... descenden
downe also ynto the pryvey to the Kyng, with an horribill and mortall wepone yn his hand.
a1500(a1450) Gener.(2) (Trin-C O.5.2)   3044:  As sone as Ermones the kyng Sawe that he was
withynne his wepons length, Anon he smote Att hym with all his strength.
a1500 *Lanfranc CP (Wel 397)   20a/14:  If the wounde be made with þe poynte of A wepyn,
that is sonest holyd, as of A sper, of A knyfe, or An arowe and othir ylike.
c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   302:  So dang he þat dog with dynt of his wappon þat þe
warlag was wete of his wan atter.
c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   1212:  Mony woundit we from his weppont [?read:
weppon] paste.
c1540(?a1400) Destr.Troy (Htrn 388)   6961:  He fell of þe frigies with his fuerse dynttes And
myche wo with his weppon wroght at þe tyme.
-?-(1474) Ordin.Househ.Pr.Edw.  30*:  We will that if any person ... draw any weapon ... in
vyolence, the firste tyme to be sett in the stockes.

(b)    1130-35(OE) Leges Edw.Conf.in Liebermann Gesetze 1   653:  Quia arma uocant wapa
[vrr. wepnen, wappe; a1159: wepne; vr. wapne] et taccare: confirmare.

a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)  51/16:  Se biscop ... befran þone ciricweard hwar þæs
halgen wæpnen [OE wæpnu] wæren.
?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)  8187:  Hise cnihhtess alle imæn Forþ 3edenn wiþþ þe bære, Wiþþ heore
wæpenn alle bun.
c1230(?a1200) Ancr.(Corp-C 402)  123/15:  Þe his wepnen [Pep: wepen; Tit: wepnes] warpeð
awei, him luste beon iwundet.
a1250 Ancr.(Nero A.14)   26/17:  Men weorreð mid þreo kunne wepnen [Cleo: wepnes], mid
scheotunge, mid speres ord, & mid sweordes egge.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   284:  Antigonus mid his weapnen & mid his wæl-kempen
iwenden toward Brutun.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   853:  Brutus hehte his beornes don on heora burnan &
heora wæpne gode, for heo to feht sculden.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   1099:  Heo stureden heora wepnan: wane wes on folke.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   10926:  Þu hauest a þisse londe ure leoden aslæ3en mid
hungere & mid hete, mid feole cunne hærmen, mid wapnen, mid wæteren, mid feole wan-siðen
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   12834:  He hæhte heom forð-riht beon al war to midder-
niht mid alle heore wenpne [Otho: wepne] to wenden wið þan kinge.
?a1300 Jacob & J.(Bod 652)  350:  Nimeþ 3oure wepnen & wendeþ 3oure wai.
a1325(?c1300) NPass.(Cmb Gg.1.1)  356:  Redi haue we swerde two And oure wepnes [vrr.
wepownes, wapyns, wapen, wappins] also.
(a1382) WBible(1) (Bod 959)   Judg.4.3:  He hadde charys fol of wepenys [WB(2) vr. wepnessis
scharpe] þe manere of siþes.
(a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)  13b/a:  Aungels ... beþ a rayed in armes and wepen of
batayle and of werre.
a1400(a1325) Cursor (Vsp A.3)   15722:  Sper and suerd and mace þai bring, And wapens [Frf:
weppenes; Got: wapins; Trin-C: wepenes] oþer maa.
a1450(?c1421) Lydg. ST (Arun 119)   4331:  Her wepnys [vr. wepons] wern so sharpe grounde
and whet, In ther armure that ther was no let.
(1424) EEWills   58/12:  I wul þat Robert my son haue oon of my swerdes and one of my
basilardes ... And I wul þat Thomas my sone haue ... myn oþer wepen and armerur.
a1425(c1333-52) Minot Poems (Glb E.9)   31/32:  Þai wald neuer blin Þe wirschip of Ingland
with wappen to win.
c1440 PLAlex.(Thrn)  66/16:  Sum of vs hase bowes & arowes, and sum speres, and oþer
diuerse wapyne.
c1440 PLAlex.(Thrn)  70/24:  Þay ... slewe of þam a grete multitude, whatt thurgh dyuerse
wapynnez, what in þaire fyres.
c1440 PLAlex.(Thrn)  74/25:  Þay hadd in þaire handez wapne made all of siluere.
a1450(1408) Vegetius(1) (Dc 291)   58/19:  Wiþ hem he fau3t wiþ heuy wepouns as malles of
leed ... and heuy axes.
a1450 LDirige(1) (Dgb 102)   110:  Whenne þou comest to iugement, Þat weren wylde, mon be
tamed, Al wopen of wraþþe mon be brent In bok of lyf þo þat be named.
a1450 PNoster R.Hermit (Westm-S 3)   14/15:  Al þe oost of þe armed folk ... toward hym
comeþ wiþ speres & swerdes & oþer eggid wepenes, hym for to slee.
c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)  958:  Þe renkis, all the route, reches vp þaire wapen [Dub:
waypynnez] Vn-to þis kid conquirour.
c1450(?a1400) Wars Alex.(Ashm 44)  1400:  Þan passe vp oure princes, prestly enarmed ... Sum
with lances on-loft, & with lange swerdis, With ax & with alblaster & alkens wapen [Dub:
wapens].
(1453) Proc.Privy C.  6.129:  It was assigned & lymitted that ayther of the seid parties shuld do
that bataill with certen weppens, that is to say, with gleyve, short sword, dagger & with axe
instede of longe sword.
(a1470) Malory Wks.(Win-C)  237/24:  By that tyme was sir Gawayne ware by the woodys syde
men commynge woodly with all maner of wepon.
(1473) in Rymer's Foedera (1709-10)   11.789:  They shall cum in pessable wise, without ...
Speyr or Bow, and without all uthir fensable Wapping (saufe Suerde and Knyffe), under the
Payne of Eschetyng of thaire Wappyings.
(a1475) Fortescue Gov.E.(LdMisc 593)  114:  Thai gon crokyd, and ben feble, not able to fight,
nor to defende þe realme; nor thai haue wepen, nor money to bie thaim wepen with all.
?a1475(?a1425) Higd.(2) (Hrl 2261)   5.273:  Hengistus ... commaundede the peple commynge
thider with hym to drawe cultres and weppyn putte prively in theire hoose.
c1484(a1475) Caritate SSecr.(Tak 38)  197/3:  Haue ner þine oste a conuenyent place to ber to
lordis if þei happe to be wondyd, in qwyche þer be kept ... harnes and al maner of weypyn.
a1500(a1415) Mirk Fest.(GoughETop 4)  223/25:  Þay ren toward hom wyth bottys, and staues,
and oþer wepon, yn ful purpos forto haue drawyn downe þe bere.
a1500(a1450) Ashmole SSecr.(Ashm 396)  88/12:  Vse also instrumentes to thrill the wall with,
and castyng wepynes [Lambeth: Instrumentz castyng stones].
a1500 Siege Jerus.(2) (Brog 2.1)   81/336:  Þen they rone euyryche apone odyr wyth þer weppun
tyll all wer slayne.

(c)    a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)  105/18:  Þæt fæsten is swyðe strang wæpen wið

deofles costnunge.

?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)  2616:  Forr þild birrþ ben wiþþ i whillc mahht To beoldenn itt & strengenn,
Swa þatt itt mu3he ben till uss God wæpenn 3æn þe deofell.
?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)  12315:  All swa wollde winnenn Crist Þurrh þise þrinne wæpenn All alls he
wann Eve & Adam.
?c1200 Orm.(Jun 1)  12485:  Þe deofell comm to wundenn Crist Þurrh gluterrnessess wæpenn.
a1225(?OE) Lamb.Hom.(Lamb 487)  155:  Ure drihten ... 3eue us mihte and streinðe to habben
þet ilke wepne þa þe apostel spekð of.
a1225(?OE) Vsp.A.Hom.(Vsp A.22)  243:  Vte we nu isi wa scel beon ur heretoche and seðe
wice ure wepne bien scu[l]e; Ur heretoche is se haligost ... Þu ahst to habben ehte wepnecin, þa
beoð sceold, helm and brenie, swrd and spere, [etc.].
a1225(?c1175) PMor.(Trin-C B.14.52)   340:  Mid almesse mid fasten and mid ibeden werie we
us wid senne; Mid þo wapne þe god haued 3ieue alle man kenne.
a1225(?a1200) Trin.Hom.(Trin-C B.14.52)  13:  Þe wapnes of his lihte ben six werkes of
brihtnesse.
a1225 Wint.Ben.Rule (Cld D.3)   3/11:  Eornestlice nu ic sende mine spece to ælc þare mannum,
ðe hir a3enum lustes ascunað & mid ... þam beorhtestum hyrsumnysse wepnum [L preclara arma]
drihtene Criste, soðum kinc3e, hyrsumian wile.
c1230(?a1200) Ancr.(Corp-C 402)  186/2:  We schulden beon ispearet þe beoreð on us his sune
deað -- Þe wepne þet sloh him, þet wes [Nero: wepnen ... weren] ure sunne?
(a1398) * Trev. Barth.(Add 27944)  14a/a:  Þey [angels] buþ I-clepid smythes for þey arrayeth
for vs goostly wepoun.
c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   20.123:  Coueityse ... caste how he my3te, Ouercome
conscience ... His wepne [vr. wepned] was al wiles to wynnen & to hyden.
c1425 Mirror LM&W (Hrl 45)   168/37-8:  Mynde of þe passioun of Crist Ihesu ... is þe wepene
þat þe fend most dredeth, for þorgh þat wepene he was ouercome.
c1425 Mirror LM&W (Hrl 45)   200/22:  Streit livynge ... is also a siker wepoun to fight wiþ
a3enst þe enemy.

(d)    c1300 SLeg.(Hrl 2277)   470/185:  Hi come ... Euerech wiþ such maner wepne as we vsieþ
alyue: Plou3 man wiþ his aker staf.

c1400 Wit & W.(Cmb Res.b.162)  B/46:  For weppen haf I wonnen.

(1415) Hoccl. Oldcastle (Hnt HM 111)   471:  Thogh we had in oure handes but a clod Of eerthe
at your heedes to slynge or caste, Were wepne ynow a smal twig or rod.
c1475 Mankind (Folg V.a.354)   421:  Wyth hys spade, þat was hys wepyn, Neu Gyse,
Nowadays, Nought hath al to-beton.

(e)    a1150(OE) Vsp.D.Hom.(Vsp D.14)  40/23:  Þa cwæð Cirus se cyng þæt he cunnigen moste

gyf he buten wæpnen mihte þone wyrm acwellen.

a1225(c1200) Vices & V.(1) (Stw 34)   121/18:  Ðe cniht ðe weapne berð unlawliche, ne
chapmann ðe beið and selð mid unritwisnesse, ne mu3en neure soðe scrifte don.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   251:  Wide he sende ... þat come to hirede riche men &
weðlen, al þat wapmon-cun þa mihte beren wæpen.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   11671:  Ich haten ælcne ohtne mon þe his wepnen beren
con.
c1275(?a1200) Lay. Brut (Clg A.9)   13424:  He leopt to wepne swule hit a liun weore.
(c1300) Havelok (LdMisc 108)   89:  Ke waste [read: He was te] beste knith at nede, þat heuere
micthe riden on stede Or wepne wagge.
(c1300) Havelok (LdMisc 108)   1436:  Nou ich am up to that helde Cumen, that ich may wepne
welde, And y may grete dintes yeue.
a1325(c1250) Gen.& Ex.(Corp-C 444)  3228:  He ne mogen figten a-gen, For wið-vten wopen
ben.
?a1325 Sith Gabriell gan (Hrl 913)   p.162:  Do [read: Ðo] þenchiþ al in him, Wiþ weepin who
wol win, Hou gode he was to nede.
c1330(?c1300) Bevis (Auch)   207/4432:  To non oþer man i nel me 3elde, While þat ich mai me
wepne welde!
(a1393) Gower CA (Frf 3)   5.338:  Tho was ther nouther schield ne spere Ne dedly wepne forto
bere.
c1400(c1378) PPl.B (LdMisc 581)   12.107:  A blynde man in bataille bereth wepne to fi3te,
And hath none happ with his axe, his enemye to hitte.
c1400(?c1380) Cleanness (Nero A.10)   835:  Er ever þay bosked to bedde, þe bor3 watz al up,
Alle þat weppen my3t welde, þe wakker and þe stronger, To umbely3e Lothez hous þe ledez to
take.
c1400(?c1390) Gawain (Nero A.10)   1586:  Þe wylde watz war of þe wy3e with weppen in
honde.
a1425(?c1350) Ywain (Glb E.9)   1219:  None es so wight wapins to welde.
a1425 Arth.& M.(LinI 150)   125:  He sent his sonde ... To al þat my3hte wepne beore, Schold
come to Englond him to weore.
?a1425(?a1350) Castleford Chron.(Göt Hist 740)  20251:  Hafes in yow now reu3 and pete Of
our neghburs ... Welner yitte þoru your herd drifen In endelise sorow for to lifen Bot yie fight
with wapen in hende Your awn contre for to defende.
c1440(?a1400) Perceval (Thrn)   20:  He was doughty of dede, A styffe body on a stede,
Wapynes to welde.
c1450(a1425) MOTest.(SeldSup 52)  1803:  Now wer þei that my3t wepyn [vr. wepens] weld to
reckynd thre c thowssand.
c1450(a1425) MOTest.(SeldSup 52)  11548:  Þer scaped non þat suld wepyns weld.
(1455) Paston (Gairdner)   3.44:  Ther was a proclamacion made in the Chauncerie, on the
Kyngs behalf, that noman shuld nether bere wepon, ner were harnes defensible.
c1475(?c1425) Avow.Arth.(Tay 9)  222:  For all þe weppuns þat he my3te weld, þe bore brittunt
his schild.
c1475(c1450) Idley Instr.  1.863:  For thy persone to make sauffegarde It is leefull to haue wapon
on hande.
?c1475 *Cath.Angl.(Add 15562)  135b:  Withowt Wapyn: exermis, exermus, Inermus, Inermis.
a1500 Conq.Irel.(Rwl B.490)  31/14:  He Sende to-for hym into Irland a knyght ... ful hardy and
wel proued yn wepyn.
a1500 Conq.Irel.(Rwl B.490)  55/31:  Out of wepyn, he was as redy to otheres byddynge as thay
to hym.
a1500 3rd Fran.Rule (Seton)   45/22:  It is forboden eny wepyn to be borne by the brethren of
this reule.

(f)    c1275(?a1216) Owl & N.(Clg A.9)  1369:  Wepne beoth gode griþ to halde.

(a1460) Vegetius(2) (Pmb-C 243)   1278:  Signys vocal in wacch and in bataile Be made ... Ne
go thei not amonge vs, lest espyes With wepon of our owne out putte our eyis.
(a1460) Vegetius(2) (Pmb-C 243)   1692:  Seyde ofte it is: the wepon bodeth peax.
c1475 Rwl.Prov.(Rwl D.328)  p.119:  Arma gerunt pacem ... Wepyn bodyd pece.

OED
{weapon}, n.

(ˈwɛp(ə)n)

Forms: α. 1 wǽpen, w‹oeacu›p(e)n, wépen, wǽmn, 1–2 wǽpn, 2–3 Orm. wæpenn, 3–7 wepen, 4
wepene, -in, 4–5 wepne, 4–6 weppen, 5–6 wepun, wep(p)yn, 5–7 wepon, 5 weppon, weppun,
(vepen), 6 weapen, 6– weapon; β. 3 E. Angl. wopen; north. and Sc. 3–7 wapen, 4 wappen,
vap(p)yn, 4–7 wapin, 5–6 wappin, wap(p)yn, 5 vappin, 5, 7 wappon, 6 wapon, vapon, vapin,
vaupyn, waippin, waipone, wapoune, 7 wapone.

[Com. Teut.: OE. wǽpen neut. = OFris. wêpin, OS. wâpan (MLG. wâpen, whence MHG. wâpen,
wâppen, mod.G. wappen only in the sense of armorial bearings), OHG. wâfan (MHG. wâfen
neut., mod.G. waffe fem.), ON. vápn neut. (Sw. vapen, Da. vaaben), Goth. *wēpn (pl. wēpna):—
OTeut. *wǣpno-m:—pre-Teut. *wēbno-m. A parallel type *wǣƀno-m (:—pre-Teut. *wēpnó-m)
is supposed by some scholars to be implied by certain rare forms in various Teut. langs.: OHG. or
OS. (Hildebrandslied) wâbnum dat. pl., OE. wǽmn, ON. vámn. Outside Teut. no probable
cognates have been found.
   The northern ME. wāpen (later wappen) and the rare (E. Anglian) wopen represent the ON.
vápn: cf. wapentake, wappenshaw. The shortening of the long stressed vowel in the first syllable
is normal; Ormin has still the OE. quantity.
The pl. in OE. was normally identical in form with the sing., but in the 10th and 11th c. forms
with final -u occur. In Layamon c 1205 the plural is usually wepnen, though there are also
examples of wepne and wapen. From the beginning of the 14th c. the plural has in ordinary use
been formed with the suffix -(e)s; with regard to the occasional uninflected plural see 1 b below.]

1. a.1.a An instrument of any kind used in warfare or in combat to attack and overcome an
enemy.

α    Beowulf 1509 Swa he ne mihte no‥wæpna ᴁewealdan.    Ibid. 1573 He‥wæpen hafenade
heard be hiltum.    c 930 O.E. Chron. an. 917, & a-hreddon eall þæt hie ᴁe-numen hæfdon, & eac
hira horsa & hira wæpna micelne dæl.    c 1205 Lay. 6424 Morpidus‥seouen hundred of-sloh
and swemde mið wepnen.    a 1225 Ancr. R. 240 Þe þet his wepnen worpeð awei, him luste beon
iwunded.    c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 15518 When þey were waxen on elde, Armes
to bere, & wepne to welde.    1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. iii. 304 Alle þat bereth baslarde, brode swerde
or launce, Axe other hachet or eny wepne ellis.    c 1386 Chaucer Monk's T. 34 With-outen
wepene saue his handes tweyne He slow and al torente the leon.    1415 Hoccleve To Sir J.
Oldcastle 471 A clod Of eerthe, at your heedes to slynge or caste, Were wepne ynow.    c 1511
1st Eng. Bk. Amer. (Arb.) Introd. 28/1 There wepyns is lange pykes and stones ther they caste
myghtly with.    1559 Mirr. Mag., Dk. Suffolk xxi, And sum with weapons would have layed on
lode.    1610 Shakes. Temp. ii. i. 322 'Tis best we stand vpon our guard‥: let's draw our
weapons.    1614 Ralegh Hist. World v. iii. §21. 579 The Battels of foote‥drew neere together‥
till they were almost within a weapons cast.    1636 Massinger Bashf. Lover i. ii, In a cause like
this, The Husbandman would change his ploughing-irons To weapons of defence.    1697 Dryden
Æneis v. 668 Fix'd in the Mast the feather'd Weapon stands.    1750 Gray Long Story 39 They hid
their armour And veil'd their weapons bright and keen.    1821 Byron Sardan. ii. i, My sword! O
fool, I wear no sword: here, fellow, Give me thy weapon.    1859 Dickens T. Two Cities i. v,
Nothing was represented in a flourishing condition, save tools and weapons.    1870 Emerson
Soc. & Solit., Eloquence (end), The Arabian warrior of fame, who wore seventeen weapons in his
belt.    1880 Encycl. Brit. XI. 278 The term ‘small arms’ includes sporting and military weapons
carried by the shooter.    1902 A. S. Hurd How Navy is run 81 There is a roar and a crash as the
great 25-ton weapon speaks.

β    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 469 Wopen of wiȝte and tol of grið.    a 1300 Cursor M. 15722 Sper and
suerd and mace þai bring, And wapens oþer maa.    1375 Barbour Bruce ix. 711 Thair fayis thaim
met vith vapnys bar.    c 1470 Henry Wallace i. 193 Wapynnys he bur, outhir gud suerd or knyff.
c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 461 With alkin wappyns‥that wes for were wroght.    1549 Compl. Scot. xi.
96 Al the vaupynis and armour of scotland to be delyuerit to the inglismen.    a 1578 Lindesay
(Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) I. 194 All the arteilzerrie‥with all maner of vaponis.    1650 J.
Nicoll Diary (Bann. Club) 28 Our Scottis army being all drowsie‥and many of thame thair
horsses and wapines to seik.
† Proverb.    a 1575 Pilkington Expos. Neh. iv. (1585) 64 b, A weapon boods peace, as the
common saying is.

transf. (humorously)    1712–14 Pope Rape Lock iii. 128 Just then, Clarissa drew with tempting
grace A two-edg'd weapon from her shining case.    1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. xix, For
Chadband‥can wield such weapons of the flesh as a knife and fork, remarkably well.    1873
Tristram Moab v. 95 Those, to him, novel weapons, a knife and fork.

†b.1.b Down to the end of the 16th c., the plural, when used in the collective sense = ‘arms’, was
often identical in form with the sing. Obs.

   c 825 Vesp. Psalter xlv. 10 Boᴁan forþreste[ð] & ᴁebriceð wepen [Vulg. arma].    c 1200
Ormin 8187 & hise cnihhtess alle imæn Forþ ȝedenn wiþþ þe bære, Wiþþ heore wæpenn alle bun,
Swa summ þeȝȝ sholldenn fihhtenn.    c 1205 Lay. 499 Al þæt wapmon-cun þa mihte beren
wapen.    c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 3283 Wepen, and srud, siluer, and gold.    a 1300 Cursor M. 7572
Þat all mai wit þat godd o might Sauues noght man in wapen bright.    c 1425 Eng. Conq. Irel.
xxi. 54 Out of wepne [v.r. wepyn], he was as redy to otheres byddynge as other to hys.    c 1450
in Kingsford Chron. Lond. (1905) 137 And then the erll of Arondell sett gouernance in that
contre and tokyn all wepyn from hem.    c 1520 Barclay Salust's Jugurth xl. 56 b, Their
ennemies‥lette them to go to the castell of the towne where their armoure and wepyn was.
1550 Harington tr. Cicero's Bk. Friendship (1562) 26 As if Coriolanus hadde anye freendes,
whether they oughte to haue borne weapon with hym agaynste their countrey.    1561 T. Hoby tr.
Castiglione's Courtyer i. (1900) 89 He was forced to arise from bankettes and runne to weapon.
1585–6 Earl of Leicester Corr. (Camden) 426 They doe make reckoning of all ther vyttell, of ther
armour, and wepon.    1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. (S.T.S.) II. 363 Thair myndes war
sa in ydleset, and close fra weir and wapoune.

c.1.c fig.

   c 888 Ælfred Boeth. iii. §1 Ic [Wisdom] wat þæt þu hæfst þara wæpna to hraðe forᴁiten þe ic
þe ær sealde.    a 1000 Guthlac 148 (Gr.) ᴀyrede hine ᴁeorne mid gæstlicum wæpnum.    c 1175
Lamb. Hom. 69 [God] ȝeue us wepne for to boren Mid gode werkes for us to weren.    a 1200
Moral Ode 336 in O.E. Hom. I, Mid fasten and almesse‥Mid þo wepnen þe god haued ȝiuen alle
mancunne.    c 1200 Ormin 12485 Þe deofell comm to wundenn Crist Þurrh gluterrnessess
wæpenn.    a 1225 Ancr. R. 366 Þe wepnen þet slowen him, þet weren ure sunnen.    1398 Trevisa
Barth. De P.R. ii. v. (1495) 32 Angels ben callyd Smythes for they araye for vs ghostly wepyn.
1561 T. Norton Calvin's Inst. iii. (1634) 405 That they‥should dedicate themselves to God,‥
and their members, weapons of righteousness to God.    1593 Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, i. iii. 61 His
Champions, are the Prophets and Apostles, His Weapons, holy Sawes of sacred Writ.    1605 ―
Lear ii. iv. 280 And let not womens weapons, water drops, Staine my mans cheekes.    1718 Pope
Iliad xx. 297 So voluble a weapon is the tongue.    1832 H. Martineau Manch. Strike iv. 53 The
first man who deserts the work‥puts the weapon of the law into the hands of our opponents.
1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 151 A consummate master of all the weapons of controversy.
1864 Bryce Holy Rom. Emp. xv. (1875) 253 The charge of heresy was one of the weapons used
with most effect against Frederick II.    1871 Freeman Norm. Conq. IV. xviii. 188 William was
not slow to follow with other weapons. His course was‥to seize the towns.
d.1.d transf. Any part of the body (esp. of a bird or beast) which is or may be used as a means of
attack or defence, as a claw, horn, tusk, or the like; in pl., the spurs of a game cock or hen.
   (Cf. arm n.2 11, armature 5.)

   1635 Markham Pleas. Princes 43 Your [Game] Henne‥must be‥well tufted on the crowne,
which shewes courage: if shee have weapons she is better.    1749 Fielding Tom Jones ii. iv,
Those weapons which she wore at the ends of her fingers.    1823 ‘Jon Bee’ Dict. Turf, Weapons,
in cocking, the spurs appearing on hens or young cocks.    1914 A. S. Woodward Guide Fossil
Rem. Man, Brit. Mus. Nat. Hist. (1915) 5 Typical modern monkeys, with the canine teeth
enlarged into weapons.

†e.1.e A soldier of a class distinguished by the weapon he uses. Obs. rare—1.

   1590 Sir J. Smyth Disc. Weapons 12 Whilest the Piquers and other weapons doo reduce
themselues into forme vnder their Ensignes.

f.1.f Used for: One skilled in the use of a weapon. rare—1. (? quasi-arch.)

   1852 Thackeray Esmond ii. viii, Blandford knows which of us two is the best weapon. At
small-sword, or back-sword,‥I can beat him.

2.2 Phrases. †a.2.a to take weapon in hand: to take up arms.

   1538 Starkey England 79 In tyme of warr, hyt ys necessary for our plowmen and laburarys of
the cuntrey to take wepun in hand.    1630 R. Johnson's Kingd. & Commw. 573 Amurath never
tooke weapon in hand against this people, before he understood‥that all Persia was in uprore.

b.2.b at all, any weapons: with weapons of any kind. †at the weapons of ―: with the weapons
used by ―. †to play one's prize(s at all, at several, in all weapons: fig. to use every or several
means to win one's contest (cf. prize n.2 b).

   1620, a 1670 [see prize n.2 b].    a 1656 Bp. Hall Soliloquies lxxv. Wks. 1662 III. 461 If the
question be concerning some scrupulous act to be done or omitted, now self-respect plays its
prizes at all weapons.    1760–72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) III. 97 At any weapons, against
any odds I will prove him a traitor.    1781 C. Johnston Hist. J. Juniper II. 139 [He] said he was
not a porter to fight with his fists; but would give him‥satisfaction‥at the weapons of a
gentleman.    1831 James Phil. Augustus vi, He was‥expert at all weapons.

c.2.c (To challenge, fight, beat, etc. an adversary) at (with) his own weapon or weapons, i.e. with
such as he is expert in. Chiefly fig.

   1610 Marcellini Triumphs Jas. I 83 To deale and cope with the envious and perfidious
malignity of these calumniators, even at their owne weapons.    1618 Bolton Florus iii. i. (1636)
163 Metellus,‥fayning flight when he meant nothing lesse, matcht him at his own weapons.
1622 Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. ii. 145 That he should put a full stoccado vpon me, and
go brag when he had done, that he had beaten a master of defence at his owne weapon.    1678
Cudworth Intell. Syst. 12 We insist so much upon this philosophy here,‥because, without the
perfect knowledge of it, we cannot deal with the atheists at their own weapon.    1760 Foote
Minor i. (1767) 11 You cockneys now beat us suburbians at our own weapons.    1781 C.
Johnston Hist. J. Juniper I. 51 This was truly foiling the Devil, at his own weapons.    1781
Johnson Lives of Poets: Congreve 17 He is very angry, and, hoping to conquer Collier with his
own weapons, allows himself in the use of every term of contumely and contempt.    c 1810
Coleridge Lit. Rem. (1838) III. 239 Their undue predilection for Patristic learning and
authority‥originated in the wish to baffle the Papists at their own weapons.    1850 C. Kingsley
Alton Locke II. xvi. 259 Try no more to meet Mammon with his own weapons, but commit your
cause to Him who judges righteously.    1897 B. Stoker Dracula xxii. 306 He has chosen this
earth because it has been holy. Thus we defeat him with his own weapon, for we make it more
holy still.

3.3 The penis. coarse slang.

   a 1000 Ags. Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 265/33 Calamus, teors, þæt wæpen, uel lim.    1377 Langl.
P. Pl. B. ix. 180 Whiles þow art ȝonge and þi wepne kene, Wreke þe with wyuynge.    1762 T.
Bridges Homer Travestie iv. 189 She guides his weapon where she lists: Nay more, a touch of her
soft hand, If fallen down, will make him stand.    1922 Joyce Ulysses 529 Well for you, you muff,
if you had that weapon with knobs and lumps and warts all over it.    1972 H. & R. Greenwald
Sex-Life Lett. (1974) 279 This sexual thrill still comes over me whenever I see a horse flashing
his weapon, and although I feel guilty and try to look away, I usually look as long as decently
possible.

4.4 attrib. and Comb.: simple attrib., as weapon-clang, weapon-crash, weapon-hoard, weapon-pit,
weapon-point, weapon-power, weapon-stroke; weapon-like, weapon-proof adjs.; objective, as
weapon-delivery (also attrib.), weapon-maker, weapon-whetter; weapon-making vbl. n.; also
†weapon-bearer = armour-bearer; †weapon-love, love as a weapon-salve; †weapon-man, one
skilled in the use of weapons; weapon(s)-carrier, a vehicle or aircraft specially designed for
carrying weapons; weapons-grade a., applied to fissile material of suitable quality for making
nuclear weapons; weapon-smith Hist., a forger or maker of weapons; weapon(s) system orig.
U.S., a military weapon together with all the equipment required to make use of it, such as
detection and control apparatus, a launcher, and a delivery vehicle; weapon-tool, a tool which
could also be used as a weapon; weapon-training vbl. n., training in the use of weapons. Also
weapon-salve.

   1535 Coverdale 1 Sam. xiv. 1 Ionathas sayde vnto his lad which was his *wapen-bearer: Come,
let vs go ouer to the Philistynes watch.    ? 1547 ― Confut. Standish To Rdr., So am I ready to do
the same agaynst‥greate Goliath of Rome and his weapen-bearer.

   1938 19th Cent. Feb. 195 The possibilities of the new *weapon-carrier in the air.    1947
Horizon Sept. 207 A weapons-carrier flew by loaded with G.I.s.

   1810 Scott Lady of L. iii. xviii, Then *weapon-clang, and martial call, Resounded through the
funeral hall.

   1813 ― Rokeby v. xxxi, And *weapon-crash and maddening cry, Of those who kill, and those
who die!
   1963 Daily Tel. 10 Oct. 15/8 TSR 2, the RAF's tactical and strategical bomber,‥has the most
secret and sophisticated all-weather *weapons delivery system in the world.    1977 R.A.F. News
22 June–5 July 2/5 Live ammunition, bombs and missiles were, in general, carried only by
aircraft flying sorties which would culminate in weapon delivery at one of the recognised ranges.

   1961 Ann. Reg. 1960 152 Both countries‥should each set aside 30,000 kilograms of
*weapons-grade uranium 235, as a first step in their transfer to peaceful uses.    1977 N. Freeling
Gadget i. 11 It won't make a bomb.‥ It's nowhere near weapons grade.

   1955 J. R. R. Tolkien Return of King 50 There are no great *weapon-hoards here, lord.

   1922 D. H. Lawrence England, my England (1924) 36 Not what we would call love, but a
*weapon-like kinship.

   a 1711 Ken Hymns Evang. Poet. Wks. 1721 I. 168 Thou when the Sword went through her
tender Heart, With *Weapon-love didst then anoint the Blade.

   1915 M. Johnston Fortunes of Garin xv. 239 Armourers and *weapon-makers.

   1936 Auden Look, Stranger! 67 Built by the conscience-stricken, the *weapon-making, By us.

   1635 J. Hayward tr. Biondi's Banish'd Virg. ii. 90 Practising my selfe in‥imitating whatsoever
I had seene done by any judicious *weapon-man.

   a 1944 K. Douglas Alamein to Zem Zem (1946) 29 Looking down‥ at a *weapon-pit beside
us, I saw a Libyan soldier reclining there.    1958 M. K. Joseph I'll soldier no More ix. 161 The
neat row of weapon-pits so convenient for sleeping.

   1814 Scott Ld. of Isles vi. xxi, Each *weapon-point is downward sent, Each warrior to the
ground is bent.

   1937 L. Hart Europe in Arms xvii. 238 At night‥an increase of man⁓power in proportion to
*weapon-power is desirable.

   1870 Bryant Iliad xxi. 699, I cannot think That he is *weapon-proof.

   1849 Kemble Saxons in Eng. ii. vii. II. 306 The heroical *weapon-smith on the one hand, and
on the other the poor professors of such rude arts as the homestead cannot do without.    1908
Expositor Sept. 265 The settled weapon-smiths of ancient Egypt‥were quite a different class
from the nomad clans of tinsmiths and coppersmiths.

   1870 Bryant Iliad xi. 471 Lightly falls the *weapon-stroke Of an unwarlike weakling.

   1956 W. A. Heflin U.S. Air Force Dict. 564/2 *Weapon system. Also weapons system.    1958
Engineering 11 Apr. 450/1 The ‘weapon system concept’—that is, a unified integration of
airframe, weapon-firing control, and enemy identification.    1977 M. Edelman Polit. Lang. viii.
147 Americans and Russians are constantly told that the other is ahead in this or that weapons
system.    1980 R. L. Duncan Brimstone x. 244 There were always 10,000 diverse elements
which were required to come together at precisely the right instant, the total testing of a weapons
system and a defense against that system.

   1861 W. R. Wilde Catal. Antiq. Anim. Materials R. Ir. Acad. 360 Weapons and *Weapon
Tools.

   1945 E. Waugh Brideshead Revisited 9 Had I put in the names of two corporals for the
*weapon-training course?    1979 R. Perry Bishop's Pawn vi. 106 Their weapon training had been
sadly neglected.‥ In killing Moss, they'd used sufficient ammunition to decimate a small army.

   1585 Higins Junius' Nomencl. 519/2 Samiarii,‥*weapon whetters.

______________________________

Draft partial entry March 2005

▸ weapon of mass destruction n. a weapon intended to cause widespread devastation and loss of
life, (now) esp. a chemical, biological, or nuclear weapon; usu. in pl.

   1937 Times 28 Dec. 9/3 Who can think without horror of what another widespread war would
mean, waged as it would be with all the new *weapons of mass destruction?    1945 N.Y. Times
16 Nov. 16/1 The agreement goes as far as is possible in the present state of the world to avert the
further use of atomic bombs and similar weapons of mass destruction.    1961 Amer. Polit. Sci.
Rev. 55 20/1 This revision should aim not only at banning nuclear weapons but also other
weapons of mass destruction of the so-called ABC family (atomic, bacteriological and chemical).
2003 Morning Star (Nexis) 25 Mar. 9 He asks if the international community could prevent the
unthinkable–the use of a weapon of mass destruction by a terrorist organisation.

wīgbill
BT
wīg-bil[l], es; n. A battle-blade, a sword :-- Ðæt sweord ongan æfter heaþoswāte hildegicelum, wīgbil
wanian, Beo. Th. 3218; B. 1607.

BTS

CH
MED

OED