cræft

See also: -cræft

Old English

FWOTD – 3 October 2012

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Germanic *krafjaną

Proto-Indo-European *-tus

Proto-Germanic *-þuz

Proto-Germanic *kraftuz

Proto-West Germanic *kraftu

Old English cræft

Inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kraftu, from Proto-Germanic *kraftuz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kræft/

Noun

cræft m

1. strength, power
2. power, ability
   • late 9th century, King Alfred's translation of Saint Augustine's Soliloquies

     Ġȳt ġyf ðē þurh ōðerne creft hwilcne findan þā ðe þē findan, forġyf mē þone creft.

     If by any other power they find Thee who do find Thee, give me that power.

3. skill
4. art
5. profession
6. virtue
7. device, especially magical
8. deceit, fraud

Declension

Strong a-stem:

	singular	plural
nominative	cræft	cræftas
accusative	cræft	cræftas
genitive	cræftes	cræfta
dative	cræfte	cræftum

Synonyms

• (art, skill, cunning): list

Derived terms

• bōccræft (“literature”)
• -cræft
• cræftan (“to craft”)
• cræftglēaw
• cræftiġ (“strong, powerful”)
• cræftlēas (“unskillful”)
• cræftlīċ (“artificial”)
• drēamcræft (“the art of music”)
• drȳcræft (“sorcery”)
• dwolcræft (“foolish craft, magic”)
• ellencræft (“power”)
• eorþcræft (“geometry”)
• flitcræft (“logic”)
• ġealdorcræft (“art of magic”)
• handcræft (“handicraft”)
• hellcræft (“hellish art”)
• lǣċecræft (“medicine”)
• lārcræft (“knowledge”)
• lēoþcræft (“poetry, poem”)
• rimcræft (“mathematics”)
• sangcræft (“the art of singing”)
• sċincræft (“magic”)
• sċipcræft (“naval power”)
• sōncræft (“music”)
• stæfcræft (“grammar”)
• sundorcræft (“special ability”)
• swēġcræft (“the art of playing music”)
• swinsungcræft (“music”)
• tungolcræft (“astronomy”)
• wiċċecræft (“witchcraft”)
• wyndecræft (“the art of weaving”)

Related terms

• cræfta

Descendants

• Middle English: craft, carft, craf, creft
  • English: craft
  • Scots: craft
  • Yola: creff