belucan

From Proto-West Germanic *bilūkan. Cognate with Old Frisian bilūka, Old Saxon bilūkan, and Old High German bilūhhan. Equivalent to be- +‎ lūcan.

• IPA^(key): /beˈluː.kɑn/

belūcan

1. to shut in; enclose, confine
2. to close
   • late 9th century, translation of Orosius’ History Against the Pagans

     Constantīnus hēt ǣrest manna þæt man ċirican timbrede and þæt man beluce ǣlċ dēofolġieldhūs.

     Constantine was the first emperor to build churches and to close every pagan temple.

3. to lock up
   • late 10th century, Ælfric, "Saint Basilus, Bishop"

     Uton belucan þas circan and loc geinseglian and ġe ealle siðþan waciað þreo niht wuniġende on gebedum and...

     Let us lock up this church, and seal the lock and do ye all afterward watch three nights, continuing in prayer and...'

4. to conclude (come or bring to an end)
   • c. 992, Ælfric, "The First Sunday of the Lord's Advent"

     Sē apostol belēac þisne pistol mid þissum wordum.

     The apostle concluded the letter with these words.

   • c. 992, Ælfric, "The Nativity of the Holy Virgins"

     Þæt godspell belȳcþ þus: "Waciaþ eornostlīċe, for þon þe ġē nyton þone dæġ ne þā tīd."

     The gospel concludes with this: "Keep watch, because you don't know the day or the hour."

5. to include
   • c. 992, Ælfric, "On the Greater Litany"

     Mid þǣre bēne hē belēac ealle þā ġelēaffullan þe þurh þāra apostola bodunge ġebugon tō Cristes ġelēafan, and ġīet būgaþ dæġhwāmlīce oþ þisse weorolde ġeendunge.

     With that prayer, he included all the believers who converted to Christ's religion, and will convert every day until the end of this world.

   • c. 995, Ælfric, Extracts on Grammar in English

     Suī (“his”) næfþ nānne vocātīvum nāwðer ne mid Crēcum ne mid Lǣdenwarum, for þām ġesċāde þæt hit nǣre ōðrum wordum ġelīċ. Fēower fiellas hē hæfþ, and þā belūcaþ twifeald ġetæl and tō ǣlcum cynne hīe belimpaþ.

     Suī (“his”) has no vocative, either in Greek or in Latin, for the reason that it's not the same as other words. It has four cases, and they include both numbers and belong to each case.

• openian

• Middle English: bilouken, belouken
  • English: belock