iwis

See also: I wis

English

Alternative forms

• iwys (16th century)
• ywis (16th-17th centuries)
• y-wis

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle English iwis, iwys, ywis (“certain, sure”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Old English ġewiss (“certain, sure”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Germanic *gawissaz (“known, certain, sure”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to know”). Cognate with Dutch gewis (“sure”), German gewiss (“certain”), Danish vis (“sure”). More at wit, wis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪˈwɪs/

Adverb

iwis (not comparable)

1. (poetic, archaic) Certainly, surely, indeed.
   • 1842, Thomas Macaulay, Horatius:

     Iwis, in all the Senate / There was no heart so bold […].

   • 1890, James Russell Lowell, Poetical Works:

     God vanished long ago, iwis, A mere subjective synthesis

Anagrams

• Wiis