weald
See also: Weald
English edit
Etymology edit
From Middle English weeld, wæld, (also wold, wald > English wold), from (West Saxon dialect) Old English weald, from Proto-West Germanic *walþu, from Proto-Germanic *walþuz.
Compare German Wald, Dutch woud. See also wold, ultimately of the same origin. Largely displaced by forest.
Pronunciation edit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /wiːld/
Audio (Southern England) (file) - (General American) IPA(key): /wild/
- Rhymes: -iːld
- Homophones: wealed, wheeled, wield
Noun edit
weald (plural wealds)
- (archaic) A forest or wood.
- (archaic) An open country.
- 1859, Alfred Tennyson, “Guinevere”, in Idylls of the King, London: Edward Moxon & Co., […], →OCLC, page 231:
- [S]he to Almesbury / Fled all night long by glimmering waste and weald, / And heard the Spirits of the waste and weald / Moan as she fled, or thought she heard them moan: […]
Usage notes edit
In modern usage, the term is seldom used, but is retained in place names, for example The Weald, Wealdstone, Harrow Weald.
Derived terms edit
Related terms edit
Anagrams edit
Old English edit
Alternative forms edit
Pronunciation edit
Etymology 1 edit
From Proto-West Germanic *walþu.
Cognates
Noun edit
weald m
Declension edit
A u-stem dative singular form, wealda, is also attested.
Declension of weald (strong a-stem)
Descendants edit
Etymology 2 edit
From Proto-West Germanic *wald, Proto-Germanic *waldą, whence also Old High German walt, Old Norse vald (Danish vold).
Noun edit
weald n
Declension edit
Declension of weald (strong a-stem)
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | weald | — |
| accusative | weald | — |
| genitive | wealdes | — |
| dative | wealde | — |
Related terms edit
Descendants edit
Etymology 3 edit
From Proto-West Germanic *wald, from Proto-Germanic *waldaz.
Adjective edit
weald
Declension edit
Declension of weald — Strong
Declension of weald — Weak