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elven

noun
/ˈɛlv(ə)n/US

Etymology

PIE word *albʰós Learned borrowing from Middle English elve, elven (“(also attributively) elf or fairy of either sex”) [and other forms], from Old English elfen, ælfen, ielfen (“female elf”), from elf, ælf, ielf (“elf”) (ultimately from Proto-Germanic *albiz (“elf, fairy”), from Proto-Indo-European *albʰós (“white”)) + -en (suffix forming feminine nouns). The English word is cognate with Middle High German elbinne (“fairy, nymph”).

  1. inherited from *albʰós✻ — “white”
  2. inherited from *albiz✻ — “elf, fairy”
  3. inherited from elfen
  4. learned borrowing from elve

Definitions

  1. Originally, a female elf, a fairy, a nymph

    Originally, a female elf, a fairy, a nymph; (by extension) any elf.

    • "In order for the elvens to stay in hiding, they live under the great vines rather above them," Aida answered. […] An elven walked over to Rhyona and nodded to her, then entered the thick wood alone.

  2. Belonging or relating to, or characteristic of, elves

    Belonging or relating to, or characteristic of, elves; elfin, elflike.

  3. An elm (a tree of the genus Ulmus, particularly the wych elm or Scots elm (Ulmus…

    An elm (a tree of the genus Ulmus, particularly the wych elm or Scots elm (Ulmus glabra))).

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for elven. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA