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sweven. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
sweven, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
sweven in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
sweven you have here. The definition of the word
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English
Etymology
From Middle English sweven, from Old English swefn (“sleep, dream, vision”), from Proto-West Germanic *swefn, from Proto-Germanic *swefną, *swefnaz (“sleep”), from Proto-Indo-European *swépnos, *supnós (“dream”), from Proto-Indo-European *swep- (“to sleep”). Cognate with Dutch suf (“drowsy”), Middle High German swēb (“sleep”), Danish søvn (“sleep”), Icelandic svefn (“sleep”), Norwegian søvn (“sleep”), Swedish sömn (“sleep”), Latin somnus (“sleep, slumber, drowsiness”), Sanskrit स्वप्न (svápna), Ancient Greek ὕπνος (húpnos).
Pronunciation
Noun
sweven (plural swevens)
- (archaic) A dream.
1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “xiij”, in Le Morte Darthur, book I (in Middle English):The kynge with the honderd knyghtes mette a wonder dreme two nyghtes a fore the bataille / that ther blewe a grete wynde & blewe doun her castels and her townes / and after that cam a water and bare hit all awey / Alle that herd of the sweuen said / it was a token of grete batayll- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- (archaic) A vision.
- The Golden Legend
- And then she said: Sir, hast thou seen the sweven that I have seen?
Anagrams
Middle Dutch
Etymology
From Old Dutch sweven, from Proto-Germanic *swibāną.
Verb
swēven
- to move back and forth
- to wander
- to float (on water)
- to float (through the air)
- to remain, to be (in a particular state)
Inflection
This verb needs an inflection-table template.
Descendants
Further reading
Middle English
Etymology 1
From Old English swefn, from Proto-West Germanic *swefn, from Proto-Germanic *swefnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *swépnos. Some forms influenced by Old Norse söfn, an alternative form of svefn.
- swevyn, swevon, swevene, swevne, swheven, squeven, sueven, seven, swene
- (Early ME) swefen, suefen, sweoven
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈswɛvən/, /ˈswɛːvən/
Noun
sweven (plural swevenes)
- dream (especially a prophetic one)
c. 1395, John Wycliffe, John Purvey [et al.], transl., Bible (Wycliffite Bible (later version), MS Lich 10.), published c. 1410, Dedis of Apoſtlis 2:17, page 91v, column 2; republished as Wycliffe's translation of the New Testament, Lichfield: Bill Endres, 2010:⁊ it ſchal be in þe laſte daies þe loꝛd ſeiþ · Y ſchal helde out my ſpirit on ech fleiſch · ⁊ ȝoure ſones and ȝoure douȝtris ſchulen p[ꝛo]pheſie ⁊ ȝoure ȝonge men ſchulen ſe viſioūs. ⁊ ȝoure eldris ſchulen dꝛeme ſweuenes- "And it'll be in the last days, (when) the Lord says: "I'll hold out my Spirit on all the people; your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your elders will dream dreams
- (waking) vision, premonition
Synonyms
Descendants
References
Etymology 2
From Old English swefan, from Proto-West Germanic *swefan, from Proto-Germanic *swefaną.
Pronunciation
Verb
sweven
- to put sb. to sleep
- (figuratively) to become calm (of the sea)
Conjugation
1Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.
Derived terms
References