wean

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: wēn, IPA^(key): /wiːn/
• Rhymes: -iːn

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Etymology 1

(deprecated template usage)

From Middle English wenen, from Old English wenian (“to accustom; habituate; train; prepare; make fit”), from Proto-Germanic *wanjaną (“to make wont; accustom”), from Proto-Indo-European *wenh₁- (“to strive for; wish; love”). Cognate with Dutch wennen, German gewöhnen, Danish vænne, Swedish vänja, Icelandic venja. Related via PIE to wone, wont, and wonder, and perhaps win.

Verb

wean (third-person singular simple present weans, present participle weaning, simple past and past participle weaned)

1. (transitive) To cease giving milk to an offspring; to accustom and reconcile (a child or young animal) to a want or deprivation of mother's milk; to take from the breast or udder.

   The cow has weaned her calf.

   • Bible, Genesis xxi. 8

     Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.

2. (intransitive) To cease to depend on the mother for nourishment.

   The kittens are finally weaning.

3. (transitive, by extension) To cause to quit something to which one is addicted or habituated.

   He managed to wean himself off heroin.

   • 1727, Jonathan Swift, (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎^[1]:

     The troubles of age were intended […] to wean us gradually from our fondness of life.

   • John Oliver

     Dalai Lama: "Then, I suggested, “Drink much less vodka.” Instead of that, they traditionally also drink horse milk—"

     Oliver: "Wait, hold on, you tried to wean them off vodka by giving them horse milk?"

     Dalai Lama: "Oh yes, and they follow."

4. (intransitive, by extension) To cease to depend.

   She is weaning from her addiction to tobacco.

Translations

to cease giving milk

• Armenian: please add this translation if you can
• Catalan: deslletar (ca), desmamar (ca)
• Czech: odstavit
• Finnish: vieroittaa
• French: sevrer (fr)
• German: abstillen (de), entwöhnen (de)
• Greek: απογαλακτίζω (el) (apogalaktízo)
• Hungarian: elválaszt (hu)
• Ido: ablaktar (io)
• Italian: svezzare (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Maori: whakamutu i te kai waiū
• Portuguese: desmamar (pt)
• Quechua: hanuk'ay
• Romanian: înțărca (ro)
• Russian: отнима́ть от груди́ impf (otnimátʹ ot grudí), отня́ть от груди́ pf (otnjátʹ ot grudí), отлуча́ть (ru) impf (otlučátʹ), отлучи́ть (ru) pf (otlučítʹ)
• Spanish: destetar (es)
• Swedish: avvänja (sv)
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Vietnamese: dứt sữa, cai sữa
• Westrobothnian:

to cease to depend on the mother for nourishment

• Czech: odvyknout, odnaučit se
• Dutch: spenen (nl)
• Finnish: vieroittua
• Greek: απογαλακτίζομαι (el) (apogalaktízomai)
• Japanese: 乳離れさせる (chichibanare saseru)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Macedonian: одвикнува (odviknuva)
• Russian: отуча́ть от груди́ impf (otučátʹ ot grudí), отучи́ть от груди́ pf (otučítʹ ot grudí), (any dependency) отуча́ть (ru) impf (otučátʹ), отучи́ть (ru) pf (otučítʹ)
• Spanish: destetarse (es)
• Thai: หย่านม (yàa-nom)

to cease to depend

• Czech: odnaučit pf
• Dutch: ontwennen (nl)
• Finnish: vieroittua
• French: sevrer (fr)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: entwöhnen (de)
• Japanese: やめさせる (yame saseru)
• Macedonian: се одвикнува (se odviknuva)
• Russian: (breastfeeding) отвыка́ть от груди́ impf (otvykátʹ ot grudí), отвы́кнуть от груди́ pf (otvýknutʹ ot grudí), (any dependency) отвыка́ть (ru) impf (otvykátʹ), отвы́кнуть (ru) pf (otvýknutʹ)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Norwegian: ^{(please verify)} avvenne
• Novial:
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} avvänja (sv)

Etymology 2

Blend of wee +‎ ane.

Noun

wean (plural weans)

1. (Scotland, Ulster) A small child.
   • 2008, James Kelman, Kieron Smith, Boy, Penguin 2009, p. 92:

     Pigs, cows and sheep and wee ducks, that was what he bought and it was just for weans and wee lasses. I said it to my maw.

     Oh it is not weans it is children. Oh Kieron, it is children and girls, do not say weans and lasses.

   • Elizabeth Browning

     I, being but a yearling wean.

Anagrams

• Ewan, Newa, anew, wane

---

Old English

Alternative forms

• ƿēan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /wæːɑn/

Noun

wēan m

1. inflection of wēa:
   1. accusative/genitive/dative singular
   2. nominative/accusative plural

---

Scots

Etymology

wee +‎ ane

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [wen], [ˈwɪən]

Noun

wean (plural weans)

1. young child

Synonyms

• bairnie

Derived terms

• weanish