ween

English

Pronunciation

• IPA: /wiːn/, X-SAMPA: /wi:n/
• Homophones: wean
• Rhymes: -iːn

Etymology 1

From Middle English wene, from Old English wēn, wēna (“hope, weening, expectation”), from Proto-Germanic *wēniz, *wēnǭ (“hope, expectation”), from Proto-Indo-European *wen- (“to strive, love, want, reach, win”). Cognate with German Wahn (“illusion, false hope”).

Noun

ween (plural weens)

1. (obsolete) Doubt; conjecture.

Etymology 2

From Middle English wenen, from Old English wēnan, from Proto-Germanic *wēnijaną. Cognate with Dutch wanen, German wähnen.

Verb

ween (third-person singular simple present weens, present participle weening, simple past weened, wende (obsolete), or wente (obsolete), past participle weened, wend (obsolete), or went (obsolete))

1. (archaic) To suppose, imagine; to think, believe.
   • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte Darthur, Book IV:

     ther cam a damoisel from Morgan le fay and brought vnto syr Arthur a swerd lyke vnto Excalibur [...], and he thanked her, & wende it had ben so, but she was fals, for the swerd and the scauberd was counterfeet & brutyll and fals.

   • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Acts VIII:

     Then sayde Peter unto hym: Perissh thou and thy money togedder. For thou wenest that the gyfte of god maye be obteyned with money?

2. (dated) To expect, hope or wish.

Quotations

• 1481 Author unknown (pseudonym Sir John Mandeville), The travels of Sir John Mandeville

  And when they will fight they will shock them together in a plump; that if there be 20000 men, men shall not ween that there be scant 10000.

• 1562 John Heywood, The proverbs, epigrams, and miscellanies of John Heywood

  Wise men in old time would ween themselves fools; Fools now in new time will ween themselves wise.

• 1677 Thomas Mall, A cloud of witnesses

  … for I ween he will no longer suffer him to abide among the adulterous and wicked Generation of this World.

• 1793, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Christabel

  But neither heat, nor frost, nor thunder,

  Shall wholly do away, I ween,

  The marks of that which once hath been.

• 1884, W.S. Gilbert, Princess Ida

  Yet humble second shall be first, I ween

• 1974, Stanislaw Lem, The Cyberiad

  Klapaucius too, I ween, Will turn the deepest green

  To hear such flawless verse from Trurl's machine.

Derived terms

• overweening

Anagrams

• Ewen
• newe

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Dutch

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -eːn

Verb

ween

1. first-person singular present indicative of wenen
2. imperative of wenen

Anagrams

• wene

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North Frisian

Adjective

ween

1. blue