bidelven

Middle English edit

Alternative forms edit

bedelven, bydelve

Etymology edit

From Old English bedelfan (“to dig around, bury”); equivalent to bi- +‎ delven. Cognate with Dutch bedelven (“to bury, overwhelm”).

Pronunciation edit

IPA^(key): /biˈdɛlvən/

Verb edit

bidelven (third-person singular simple present bidelveth, present participle bidelvende, first-/third-person singular past indicative bidalf, past participle bidolven)

To bury; to cover up.
To dig around or about.

Conjugation edit

Conjugation of bidelven (strong class 3)

infinitive	(to) bidelven
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	bidelve	bidalf
2nd-person singular	bidelvest	bidolve, bidalf
3rd-person singular	bidelveth	bidalf
subjunctive singular	bidelve	bidolve¹
imperative singular	bidelve	—

plural²	bidelven, bidelve	bidolven, bidolve
imperative plural	bidelveth, bidelve	—

participles	bidelvynge, bidelvende	bidolven, bidolve

¹Replaced by the indicative in later Middle English.
²Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

References edit

“bidelven, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.