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sooth - 5 dictionary results

sooth

  [sooth] Archaic.
Use sooth in a Sentence
–noun
1. truth, reality, or fact.
–adjective
2. soothing, soft, or sweet.
3. true or real.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE sōth; c. OS sōth, ON sannr, Goth sunjis true, Skt sat, sant true, real; akin to is

Related forms:
soothly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To sooth
sooth   (sōōth)   
adj.  
  1. Real; true.
  2. Soft; smooth.
n.  Truth; reality.

[Middle English, from Old English sōth; see es- in Indo-European roots.]
sooth'ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Sooth

Sooth\ (s[=oo]th), a.; also adv. [Compar. Soother (s[=oo]th"[~e]r); superl. Soothest.] [OE. soth, AS. s[=o][eth], for san[eth]; akin to OS. s[=o][eth], OHG. sand, Icel. sannr, Sw. sann, Dan. sand, Skr. sat, sant, real, genuine, present, being; properly p. pr. from a root meaning, to be, Skr. as, L. esse; also akin to Goth. sunjis true, Gr. 'eteo`s, Skr. satya. [root]9. Cf. Absent, Am, Essence, Is, Soothe, Sutee.]

1. True; faithful; trustworthy. [Obs. or Scot.]

The sentence [meaning] of it sooth is, out of doubt. --Chaucer.

That shall I sooth (said he) to you declare. --Spensser.

2. Pleasing; delightful; sweet. [R.]

The soothest shepherd that ever piped on plains. --Milton.

With jellies soother than the creamy curd. --Keats.

Sooth

Sooth\, n. [AS. s[=o][eth]. See Sooth, a.]

1. Truth; reality. [Archaic]

The sooth it this, the cut fell to the knight. --Chaucer.

In sooth, I know not why I am so sad. --Shak.

In good sooth, Its mystery is love, its meaninng youth. --Longfellow.

2. Augury; prognostication. [Obs.]

The soothe of birds by beating of their wings. --Spenser.

3. Blandishment; cajolery. [Obs.] --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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sooth 
O.E. soð "truth," noun use of soþ (adj.) "true," originally *sonþ-, from P.Gmc. *santhaz (cf. O.N. sannr, O.S. soth, O.H.G. sand "true," Goth. sunja "truth"), and thus cognate with O.E. synn "sin" and L. sontis "guilty" (truth is related to guilt via "being the one;" see sin), from PIE *es-ont- "being, existence," thus "real, true," from prp. of base *es-, the s-form of the verb "to be" (see be), preserved in L. sunt "they are" and Ger. sind. Archaic in Eng., it is the root of modern words for "true" in Swed. (sann) and Dan. (sand). In common use until c.1650, then obsolete until revived as an archaism early 19c. by Scott, etc. Soothsayer is attested from 1340, from O.E. seðan "declare (the truth)."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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