Old English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Proto-West Germanic *þankijan, from Proto-Germanic *þankijaną.

Cognate with Old Frisian thenka, Old Saxon thenkian, Old Dutch thenken, Old High German denken, Old Norse þekkja, Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌲𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (þagkjan). All ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *teng- (to think).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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þenċan

  1. to think
    þenċe, for þȳ iċ eom.
    I think, therefore I am.
    Ne magon wē þenċan þæt wē seċġan ne magon.
    We cannot think what we cannot say.
    Betere is þæt man þenċe tō swīðe þonne tō lȳt.
    It's better to think too much than too little.

Usage notes

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This word refers primarily to thinking as in having thoughts. For thinking as in having an opinion, wēnan was most often used.

Conjugation

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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