gretan

Gothic

Romanization

grētan

1. romanization of 𐌲𐍂𐌴𐍄𐌰𐌽

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡreː.tɑn/
• Rhymes: -eː.tɑn

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *grōtijan, from Proto-Germanic *grōtijaną.

Alternative forms

• grœ̄tan — Anglian, early Kentish

Verb

grētan (West Saxon, late Kentish)

1. to greet, address
   • 10th century, The Wanderer:

     þonne māga ġemynd · mōd ġeondhweorfeð,
     grēteð glīwstafum, · ġeorne ġeondsċēawað
     seċġa ġeseldan. · Swimmað oft on weġ.

     when mind goes through memory of kinsmen,
     greets with mirths, eagerly looks through
     comrades of men. They often swim away.

2. to say goodbye, bid farewell
3. to touch, handle
4. to have to do with a person
   1. to treat a person medically
   2. (euphemistic) to have sex with a person
5. to attack or lay hands on someone

Conjugation

Conjugation of grētan (weak, class 1)

infinitive	grētan	grētenne
indicative mood	present tense	past tense
first person singular	grēte	grētte
second person singular	grētest, grētst	grēttest
third person singular	grēteþ, grētt, grēt	grētte
plural	grētaþ	grētton
subjunctive	present tense	past tense
singular	grēte	grētte
plural	grēten	grētten
imperative
singular	grēt
plural	grētaþ
participle	present	past
	grētende	(ġe)grēted

Descendants

• Middle English: greten
  • English: greet
  • Scots: grete, greit

References

• Joseph Bosworth; T. Northcote Toller (1898), “grétan”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, second edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Germanic *grētaną.

Verb

grētan (Anglian, late Kentish)

1. alternative form of grǣtan

Conjugation

Conjugation of grētan (strong class 7 Anglian)

🛈 This feature is under development and may not always produce the expected forms

infinitive	grētan¹	grētenne, grētanne
indicative mood	present tense	past tense
first person singular	grētu, grēte	grēt
second person singular	grētes³	grēte³
third person singular	grēteþ²	grēt
plural	grētaþ²	grētun, grēton
subjunctive	present tense	past tense
singular	grēte	grēte
plural	grēten¹	grēten¹
imperative
singular	grēt
plural	grētaþ²
participle	present	past
	grētende	(ġe)grēten

¹In Northumbrian, final -n was regularly lost from these forms
²In Late Northumbrian, final -þ was frequently changed to -s
³In Mercian, final -t was sometimes added to these forms due to West Saxon influence