þonne

See also: Yonne

Old English

Alternative forms

• þanne, þænne, ðonne

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *þannē, extension of *þan, from Proto-Germanic *þan (“then”), from Proto-Indo-European *só.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈθon.ne/

Adverb

þonne

1. then, at that time
2. then, soon afterward
3. then, in that case
   • late 9th century, King Alfred's translation of Saint Augustine's Soliloquies

     Wōst þū þonne gyt genōh be Gode, gyf hē þē byð cūð swā þē is nū þes mōnan færeld — on hwilcum tungle hē nū is, oððe on hwilce hē þanon gēð?

     Then wouldst thou know enough about God, if He should be as well known to thee as the motion of the moon—in what constellation it now is, or into which it is going next?

Usage notes

• In the sense of "at that time", þonne is generally not used for past-tense statements; þā is used instead.
• When used as an adverb, þonne is frequently used as the first element of the clause, with the finite verb immediately following it as the second, although exceptions exist.

Conjunction

þonne

1. than
2. (relative) when
   • 10th century, Exeter Book Riddle 30‎^[1]:

     Þonne iċ mec onhebbe ond hī onhnīgaþ tō mē, moniġe mid miltse, þǣr iċ monnum sceal īċan upcyme ēadiġnesse.

     When I raise myself up and they bow down to me, many with mercy, then I shall increase rising of happiness for men.

Usage notes

• Does not mean "when" in the interrogative sense. For questions, hwonne is used instead.
• In the sense of "when", þonne is generally not used for past-tense statements; þā is used instead.
• When used as a conjunction, the verb in the following clause typically does not occur immediately after þonne (often being found at the end of the clause), unlike when it is used as an adverb.

Descendants

• Middle English: then(ne), than(ne)
  • English: then, than
  • Scots: than, then, an
    • ⇒ Scots: thance