bern

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English bearn, contracted forms of Old English berern, bereærn (“barn, granary”). Equivalent to bere +‎ -ern.

Alternative forms

• barn, baryn, bærn, berne

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛrn/, /ˈbɛːrn/

Noun

bern (plural bernes)

1. barn, farm building, granary
   • c. 1395, John Wycliffe, John Purvey [et al.], transl., Bible (Wycliffite Bible (later version), MS Lich 10.)‎, published c. 1410, Matheu 3:12, page 2r, column 1; republished as Wycliffe's translation of the New Testament, Lichfield: Bill Endres, 2010:

     whos wynewing cloþ is in his hond .· ⁊ he ſchal fulli clenſe his coꝛn flooꝛ / and he ſchal gadere his wheete in to his berne .· but þe chaf he ſchal bꝛenne wiþ fier þat mai not be quenchid

     His winnowing fan is in his hand; he'll fully clean his threshing-floor, he'll gather up his wheat into his barn, and he'll burn the chaff with unquenchable fire.

Descendants

• English: barn
• Scots: bern
• Yola: barrn

References

• “bē̆rn, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-03-22.

Etymology 2

Inherited from Old English beorn; probably from Proto-Germanic *bernuz.

Alternative forms

• barn, beorn, beren, berin, berne, beryn, biern, birn, buirn, burn, burne, byrne

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /beːrn/, /bɛrn/
• (early) IPA^(key): /bøːrn/

Noun

bern (plural bernes)

1. A man or human.
2. A knight, soldier or warrior.
3. A lord or noble.

Usage notes

This noun was frequently conflated with baroun in later Middle English.

References

• “bē̆rn, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-03-16.

Etymology 3

Noun

bern

1. Alternative form of barn (“child”)

Etymology 4

Verb

bern

1. Alternative form of beren

Etymology 5

Verb

bern

1. Alternative form of bernen

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English bern, from Old English bereærn.

Noun

bern (plural berns)

1. barn

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian bern, barn, from Proto-West Germanic *barn.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɛːn/, /bɛn/

Noun

bern n (plural bern, diminutive berntsje)

1. child, children

Derived terms

• berneftich
• bernsbern

Further reading

• “bern (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011