cruelte

Middle English

FWOTD – 31 March 2022

Alternative forms

• creweltee, crueltee, cruelete, crualte, cruwelltee, cruwelletee

Etymology

From Old French cruauté, from cruel. Doublet of crudelite and equivalent to cruel +‎ -te.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkriu̯ɛlteː/, /ˈkriu̯alteː/, /ˈkriu̯əlteː/

Noun

cruelte (plural crueltes)

1. The state of being cruel; cruelness, cruelty, ruthlessness.
   • a. 1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, “The Knight's Tale”, in The Canterbury Tales, lines 1543–1544:

     How longe Juno thurgh thy crueltee, / Woltow werreyen Thebes the citee?.

     For how long, Juno, with your cruelty, / Will you assail the city of Thebes?

2. Viciousness, ferociousness; the state of being fierce.
3. (rare) Strictness, unforgivingness.
4. (rare) Injuriousness, painfulness.

Usage notes

This word, as in modern English, is more common than its synonym cruelnesse.

Descendants

• English: cruelty
• Scots: cruelty

References

• “crūeltẹ̄, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-09-12.