Saxon

[ sak-suhn ]

noun
  1. a member of a Germanic people in ancient times dwelling near the mouth of the Elbe, a portion of whom invaded and occupied parts of Britain in the 5th and 6th centuries.

  2. the Old English dialects of the regions settled by the Saxons.

  1. a native or inhabitant of Saxony in modern Germany.

  2. an English person; Britisher.

  3. an Anglo-Saxon.

  4. (not in scholarly use) the Old English language.

  5. a member of the royal house of Germany that ruled from 919 to 1024.

adjective
  1. of or relating to the early Saxons or their language.

  2. of or relating to Saxony in modern Germany.

Origin of Saxon

1
1250–1300; Middle English, probably <Late Latin Saxō, Saxonēs (plural) <Germanic; replacing Old English Seaxan (plural)

Other words from Saxon

  • non-Saxon, noun, adjective
  • pre-Saxon, adjective, noun

Words Nearby Saxon

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How to use Saxon in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Saxon

Saxon

/ (ˈsæksən) /


noun
  1. a member of a West Germanic people who in Roman times spread from Schleswig across NW Germany to the Rhine. Saxons raided and settled parts of S Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries ad. In Germany they established a duchy and other dominions, which changed and shifted through the centuries, usually retaining the name Saxony

  2. a native or inhabitant of Saxony

    • the Low German dialect of Saxony

    • any of the West Germanic dialects spoken by the ancient Saxons or their descendants

adjective
  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the ancient Saxons, the Anglo-Saxons, or their descendants

  2. of, relating to, or characteristic of Saxony, its inhabitants, or their Low German dialect

Origin of Saxon

1
C13 (replacing Old English Seaxe): via Old French from Late Latin Saxon-, Saxo, from Greek; of Germanic origin and perhaps related to the name of a knife used by the Saxons; compare saw 1

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