wær
Middle English
Noun
wær
- alternative form of werre (“war”)
Old English
Etymology 1
From Proto-West Germanic *war. Cognate with Old Saxon war, Old High German war, Old Norse varr, Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐍂𐍃 (wars).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /wær/
Adjective
wær (comparative wærra, superlative wærest)
- cautious, on guard, watching out for something (+genitive)
Declension
Derived terms
Descendants
Etymology 2
From Proto-West Germanic *wār (“true”).
Germanic cognates include Old High German wār, wāra (German wahr), Old Saxon wār (Low German war), Old Dutch wār (Dutch waar), Old Norse várar pl. The Indo-European root is also the source of Latin vērus, Old Irish fír (Irish fíor), Welsh cywir, Old Church Slavonic вѣра (věra), Russian ве́ра (véra).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /wæːr/
Adjective
wǣr
- true, correct
- Iċ ġelȳfe þæt hit from Gode cōme, brōht from his bysene, þæs mē þes boda sæġde wǣrum wordum.
- I believe that it came from God, brought from His example, for this messenger told me in true words.
Usage notes
As a simplex, attested only once in Genesis B. Attested several times in composition, cf. Genesis A 67a, Juliana 351a, etc.
Declension
| Singular | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | wǣr | wǣr | wǣr |
| Accusative | wǣrne | wǣre | wǣr |
| Genitive | wǣres | wǣrre | wǣres |
| Dative | wǣrum | wǣrre | wǣrum |
| Instrumental | wǣre | wǣrre | wǣre |
| Plural | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
| Nominative | wǣre | wǣra, wǣre | wǣr |
| Accusative | wǣre | wǣra, wǣre | wǣr |
| Genitive | wǣrra | wǣrra | wǣrra |
| Dative | wǣrum | wǣrum | wǣrum |
| Instrumental | wǣrum | wǣrum | wǣrum |
| Singular | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | wǣra | wǣre | wǣre |
| Accusative | wǣran | wǣran | wǣre |
| Genitive | wǣran | wǣran | wǣran |
| Dative | wǣran | wǣran | wǣran |
| Instrumental | wǣran | wǣran | wǣran |
| Plural | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
| Nominative | wǣran | wǣran | wǣran |
| Accusative | wǣran | wǣran | wǣran |
| Genitive | wǣrra, wǣrena | wǣrra, wǣrena | wǣrra, wǣrena |
| Dative | wǣrum | wǣrum | wǣrum |
| Instrumental | wǣrum | wǣrum | wǣrum |
Synonyms
Derived terms
Etymology 3
From Proto-West Germanic *wāru, from Proto-Germanic *wērō (“truth”). Cognate with Old Saxon wār (“truth”), Old High German wāra (“truth”), Latin vērus (“true”).
Noun
wǣr f (nominative plural wǣra or wǣre)
Declension
Strong ō-stem:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | wǣr | wǣra, wǣre |
| accusative | wǣre | wǣra, wǣre |
| genitive | wǣre | wǣra |
| dative | wǣre | wǣrum |