Colonial Sense: Society-Lifestyle: Colonial Dictionary

Colonial Dictionary

This section is an ongoing project dedicated to the words of the Colonial Era. Granted, many of these words would not be used at the local tavern, but may well have been employed in more learned circles. In addition to words used then that are not used now, we also include words that may still be around whose meanings have changed since early America.

Whenever possible, we try to provide a full etymological background of each entry, as well as examples of usage from then-current literature.

Though we use a wide variety of resources for this project, we'd be remiss not to mention Dictionary of Early English by Joseph T. Shipley (Introduction by Mark Van Doren), which you can find in its entirety HERE, readable online, or as a downloadable .pdf file...

Please Contact Us if you have any additions (that we haven't added yet -- this is a work-in-progress) or corrections to these entries...we hope you find this Colonial Dictionary interesting and useful.

-- The Colonial Sense Team

Browse

1 of 533 Entries

Displaying Entries 1 to 1

Word

Definition

Wale

In addition to current uses (to mark the flesh with wales or weals, etc.) wale was a verb, to choose (also with out; to wale by, to select and put aside); a noun, the act of choosing, the chosen, choice, the best; and an adjective, chosen, choice, excellent -- from the 13th century. Common forms through the 16th century, they were renewed by Scott (GUY MANNERING, 1815: The Bertrams were aye the wale o' the countryside!) and others in the 19th. Thus De Quincey in his NOTES ON LANDOR (1847) states: Our Arab friend, however, is no connoisseur in courts of law: small wale of courts in the desert. The verb form of wale was used by Burns, Carlyle, Scott, and others. The adjectival use was not revived; it may be seen in THE DESTRUCTION OF TROY (1400): She went up from that worthy into a wale chamber.

1 of 533 Entries

Displaying Entries 1 to 1