sweven

English

Etymology

From Middle English sweven, from Old English swefn (“sleep, dream, vision”), from Proto-West Germanic *swefn, from Proto-Germanic *swefną, *swefnaz (“sleep”), from Proto-Indo-European *swépnos, *supnós (“dream”), from Proto-Indo-European *swep- (“to sleep”).

Cognate with Dutch suf (“drowsy”), Middle High German swēb (“sleep”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål søvn (“sleep”), Faroese svøvnur (“sleep”), Icelandic svefn, svöfn (“sleep; dream”), Norwegian Nynorsk svebn, svemn, svevn, svøbn, svømn, sømn, søvn (“sleep”), Swedish sömn (“sleep”), Latin somnus (“sleep, slumber, drowsiness”), Sanskrit स्वप्न (svápna, “sleep; dream”), Ancient Greek ὕπνος (húpnos, “sleep”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈswɛvən/
• Rhymes: -ɛvən

Noun

sweven (plural swevens) (archaic)

1. A dream.
   • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “xiij”, in Le Morte Darthur, book I:

     The kynge with the honderd knyghtes mette a wonder dreme two nyghtes a fore the bataille / that ther blewe a grete wynde & blewe doun her castels and her townes / and after that cam a water and bare hit all awey / Alle that herd of the sweuen said / it was a token of grete batayll

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • 1885, Sir Richard Burton, transl., The Thousand Nights and One Night:

     [The queen] went in to the Sultan and assured him that their daughter had suffered during all her wedding-night from swevens and nightmare.

2. A vision.
   • (Can we date this quote by Golden Legend and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?) The Golden Legend

     And then she said: Sir, hast thou seen the sweven that I have seen?

Derived terms

• swevening

Related terms

• sweb

Anagrams

• venews

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch sweven, from Proto-Germanic *swibāną.

Verb

swēven

1. to move back and forth
2. to wander
3. to float (on water)
4. to float (through the air)
5. to remain, to be (in a particular state)

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants

• Dutch: zweven
• Limburgish: zwaeve, zweive, zwieëve

Further reading

• Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “sweven”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Middle English

FWOTD – 19 February 2020

Etymology 1

From Old English swefn, from Proto-West Germanic *swefn, from Proto-Germanic *swefnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *swépnos. Some forms influenced by Old Norse söfn, an alternative form of svefn.

Alternative forms

• seven, swene, swevene, swevne, swevon, swevyn, swheven
• suefen, sweoven (Early Middle English)
• squeven, sueven, swefen (Northern, Northwest Midland)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈswɛvən/, /ˈswɛ̞ːvən/

Noun

sweven (plural swevenes)

1. dream (especially a prophetic one)
   • c. 1395, John Wycliffe, John Purvey [et al.], transl., Bible (Wycliffite Bible (later version), MS Lich 10.)‎^[1], published c. 1410, Dedis of Apoſtlis 2:17, folio 91, verso, column 2; republished as Wycliffe's translation of the New Testament, Lichfield: Bill Endres, 2010:

     ⁊ it ſchal be in þe laſte daies þe loꝛd ſeiþ · Y ſchal helde out my ſpirit on ech fleiſch · ⁊ ȝoure ſones and ȝoure douȝtris ſchulen p[ꝛo]pheſie ⁊ ȝoure ȝonge men ſchulen ſe viſioūs. ⁊ ȝoure eldris ſchulen dꝛeme ſweuenes

     "And it'll be in the last days, (when) the Lord says: "I'll hold out my Spirit on all the people; your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your elders will dream dreams […]

2. (waking) vision, premonition

Synonyms

• drem

Related terms

• swevenen
• swevenynge

Descendants

• English: sweven
• Scots: sweven, swevyn

References

• “swē̆ven, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 29 December 2018.

Etymology 2

From Old English swefan, from Proto-West Germanic *swefan, from Proto-Germanic *swefaną.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈswɛ̞ːvən/

Verb

sweven

1. to put to sleep
2. (figuratively) to become calm (of the sea)

Conjugation

Conjugation of sweven (weak in -ede)

infinitive	(to) sweven, sweve
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	sweve	sweved(e)
2nd-person singular	swevest	swevedest
3rd-person singular	sweveth	sweved(e)
subjunctive singular	sweve
imperative singular		—
plural1	sweven, sweve	sweveden, sweved(e)
imperative plural	sweveth, sweve	—
participles	swevynge, swevende	sweved, ysweved

¹ Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Derived terms

• asweved
• isweven

References

• “swēven, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.