What does Middle English “yreyn” mean? Wycliffe’s Bible Isaiah.59:5 Studylight: “Thei han broke eiren of snakis, and maden webbis of an yreyn; he that etith of the eiren of hem, schal die, and that that is nurschid, ether brouyt forth, schal breke out in to a cocatrice.” King James Bible: “They hatch cockatrice’ eggs, and … Read more
What does Middle English “cheping” mean? Wycliffe’s Bible (page 26) Mt.11:16 Studylight: “But to whom schal Y gesse this generacioun lijk? It is lijk to children sittynge in chepyng, that crien to her peeris” King James Bible: “…But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling … Read more
What is the Middle English letter? Wycliffe’s Bible (page 16) Mt.5:27 Studylight: “Ye han herd that it was seid to elde men, Thou schalt `do no letcherie.” King James Bible: “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery” Mt.5:38 Studylight: “Ye han herd that it hath … Read more
What does Middle English “bihiȝten” mean? Wycliffe’s Bible (page 87) Mk.14:11 Studylight: “And thei herden, and ioyeden, and bihiyten to yyue hym money. And he souyt hou he schulde bitraye hym couenabli.” King James Bible: “…And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might … Read more
Why was “her” used here? Wycliffe Bible Mk.1:20 In accordance with studylight.org: “…brother, in a boot makynge nettis. 20 And anoon he clepide hem; and thei leften Zebedee, her fadir, in the boot with hiryd seruauntis, and thei suweden hym. And thei entriden” I think, that “their” should be used instead. Answer In Middle English, … Read more
I was reading the Romance of Tristan and I came across the passage: “Therefore did Tristan claim justice and the right of battle and therefore was he careful to fail in nothing of the homage he owed King Mark, his lord.” I see these kinds of grammar reversals a lot in older English, like: “Quickly … Read more
How is ‘wl-‘ pronounced at the beginning of a word? Of course, you just don’t pronounce it at all, because there is no English word that begins that way and if there were, well, that’s just not English there can’t be any. Also, even though there are many possible arbitrary consonant sequences, some that just … Read more
I am trying to read Canterbury tales by Chaucer. Now, I am not a native English speaker. So, the trouble I had in reading it goes like this. Take the beginning, “Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote, The droghte of March hath perced to the roote “ Now some of those words are obvious, … Read more
I was reading Chaucer and I am unsure on the pronunciation of “ch” and “wh”. It’s written in the guide that all “ch” is read as in “church” and it makes sense in words like “chivalrye”, but sounds awkward in “Christendom” which was probably going a different route when it was being borrowed, since I … Read more
I was looking at a recipe for “Vele, kede, or henne in Bokenade” from a 15th century cookery book, but am confused by the words “smyte” and “pecys” in the following phrase: an smyte hem in pecys I assume this means “and smite him in pieces”, which might be rewritten as “cut it into pieces”? … Read more
