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cwen. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
cwen, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
cwen in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
cwen you have here. The definition of the word
cwen will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
cwen, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Old English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From earlier cwœ̄n ← *kwœ̄ni ← *kwōni ← *kwą̄ni, from Proto-West Germanic *kwāni (“woman, wife”), from Proto-Germanic *kwēniz, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷḗn. Cognate with Old Saxon quān, Old Norse kvæn, Gothic 𐌵𐌴𐌽𐍃 (qēns). The Indo-European root is also the source of Ancient Greek γυνή (gunḗ), Proto-Slavic *žena, and Old Irish ben.
Pronunciation
Noun
cwēn f
- queen (a ruling female monarch or a king's wife)
Engla cwēn- The queen of England
- princess (a king's daughter)
- woman
- wife
Declension
Declension of cwen (strong i-stem)
Synonyms
- cyninge (rare word for queen)
- wīf (the usual word for woman/wife)
Derived terms
Related terms
Descendants
- Middle English: quene, qwene, cwene, queene, quen, qween, qweene, queyne, qwenne, qwhene, kuene, quiene, queen