wrecan

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *wrekaną (“to pursue, to drive out”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwre.kɑn/

Verb

wrecan

1. (transitive, intransitive) to punish (+ dative = a person) (+ accusative = a wrong)

   Sēo lǣrestre wræc hire leornerum þæt hīe yfelra worda brucon.

   The teacher punished her students for using bad words.

2. (transitive, intransitive) to avenge or take revenge (+ accusative or with on + dative = "on someone")

   Iċ ġehēt mīnum fæder ġif hine man ofslōge, þæt iċ his dēaþ wrǣċe.

   I promised my father that if he was killed, I would avenge his death.

   Ġif ġē ūs priciaþ, ne blēdaþ wē? Ġif ġē ūs ċiteliaþ, ne hliehhaþ wē? Ġif ġē ūs ġeǣtriaþ, ne sweltaþ wē? And ġif ġē ūs yfeliaþ, ne wrecaþ wē?

   If you prick us, don't we bleed? If you tickle us, don't we laugh? If you poison us, don't we die? And if you wrong us, don't we take revenge?

3. to unleash or take out (one's anger) (with on + dative = on someone)

   Hē wræc his ierre on his bearnum.

   He took out his anger on his children.

4. to drive, press

   (a) to drive out, expel

   (b) to drive words out, express, recite

   • 9th or 10th century, The Seafarer

     Mæġ iċ be mē selfum / sōðġiedd wrecan.

     I can recite a true story about myself.

   (c) to drive in, impress, inlay

Conjugation

Synonyms

• (to punish): wītnian

Antonyms

• ārian (“to spare”)
• forġiefan (“to forgive”)
• sparian (“to spare”)

Derived terms

Related terms

• wracu (“revenge”)

Descendants

• Middle English: wreken
  • English: wreak
  • Scots: wreke, wrek, wreik

References

• Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) “wrecan”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎, 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.