verb (used with object), verb (used without object) Archaic.
1.
to think; suppose.
2.
to expect, hope, or intend.
Origin:
before 900; Middle English wenen, Old English wēnan to expect; cognate with German wähnen to imagine, Old Norse væna, Gothic wēnjan to hope, expect
before 900; Middle English wenen, Old English wēnan to expect; cognate with German wähnen to imagine, Old Norse væna, Gothic wēnjan to hope, expect
Related forms
un·weened, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
|
Link To ween
Collins
World English Dictionary
ween (wiːn) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| archaic to think or imagine (something) | |
| [Old English wēnan; related to Old Saxon wānian, Gothic wēnjan, German wähnen to assume wrongly] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
Ween
is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
ween
O.E. wenan "to think," from P.Gmc. *woenijanan (cf. O.S. wanian, O.N. væna, O.Fris. wena, O.H.G. wanen, Ger. wähnen, Goth. wenjan "to expect, suppose, think"), from *woeniz "expectation," from PIE base *wen- "to wish, desire, strive for" (see Venus). Archaic since 17c.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Cite This Source
Example sentences
Her life is a comfortable balance bet ween teaching and creating art.
It can begin to ween people from the dependency of the foreign aid system.
First, a court must decide whether there is an actual or real conflict bet ween the potentially applicable laws.
Since their enactment, the property tax shifts have been an unending source of friction bet ween state and local government.
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