wist

See also: -wist

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /wɪst/
• Rhymes: -ɪst

Etymology 1

Past indicative of wit: from Old English witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“see, know”). Cognate with Dutch weten, German wissen, Swedish veta, and Latin videō (“I see”). Compare guide.

Verb

wist

1. (archaic) simple past and past participle of wit.
   • a1796, Robert Burns, "Bonie Jean: A Ballad", in Poems and Songs, P.F. Collier & Son (1909–14), Bartleby.com (2001), [1],

     And lang ere witless Jeanie wist, / Her heart was tint, her peace was stown!

   • 1837, Thomas Carlyle, The French Revolution: A History […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLC, (please specify the book or page number):

     Did the maledicent Bodyguard, getting (as was too inevitable) better malediction than he gave, load his musketoon, and threaten to fire; and actually fire? Were wise who wist!

Etymology 2

A misunderstanding, or a joking use of the past indicative of wit; see Etymology 1.

Verb

wist (third-person singular simple present wists, present participle wisting, simple past and past participle wisted)

1. (nonstandard, pseudo-archaic) To know, be aware of.

Usage notes

• This use of wist was never a part of the regular English language; rather, it resulted from the erroneous attempted use of archaisms.

Anagrams

• WITs, WSIT, wits

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɪst

• Audio:

  (file)

Verb

wist

1. singular past indicative of weten
2. inflection of wissen:
   1. second/third-person singular present indicative
   2. (archaic) plural imperative

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /wist/

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *wisti (“essence”).

Noun

wist f

1. being, existence
2. well-being

Declension

Declension of wist (strong i-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	wist	wiste, wista
accusative	wist, wiste	wiste, wista
genitive	wiste	wista
dative	wiste	wistum

Derived terms

• andwist
• midwist
• samodwist

Descendants

• Middle English: wiste, wyste

Etymology 2

From Proto-West Germanic *wisti (“food”).

Noun

wist f

1. provisions, food
2. feast, meal
   • 10th century, The Wanderer:

     Ġemon hē seleseċġas · ond sincþege,
     hū hine on ġeoguðe · his goldwine
     wenede tō wiste · Wyn eal ġedrēas.

     He remembers hall-men and takings of treasures,
     how his goldfriend accustomed him
     to feast on youth. Mirth has completely perished.

3. delicacy
4. abundance, plenty
   • The Legend of St. Andrew in Verse

     ...Ne ġedafenað þē nū þē dryhten ġeaf welan and wiste and woruldspēde,...

     ...It befitteth thee not since to thee the Lord hath given wealth and abundance and worldly prosperity,...

Declension

Declension of wist (strong i-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	wist	wiste, wista
accusative	wist, wiste	wiste, wista
genitive	wiste	wista
dative	wiste	wistum

Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from English whist.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvist/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ist
• Syllabification: wist

Noun

wist m inan

1. whist (card game)

Declension

Declension of wist

	singular	plural
nominative	wist	wisty
genitive	wistu	wistów
dative	wistowi	wistom
accusative	wist	wisty
instrumental	wistem	wistami
locative	wiście	wistach
vocative	wiście	wisty

Further reading

• wist in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• wist in Polish dictionaries at PWN