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twain

num
/tweɪn/

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁der. Proto-Germanic *twai Proto-West Germanic *twai-der. Old English twēġen Middle English tweyne English twain PIE word *dwóh₁ From Middle English tweyne, tweien, twaine, from Old English twēġen m (“two”), from Proto-West Germanic *twai-, from Proto-Germanic *twai, from Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁. Cognate with Saterland Frisian twäin, Low German twene, German zween. More at two. The word outlasted the breakdown of gender in Middle English and survived as a secondary form of two, then especially in the cases where the numeral follows a noun. Its continuation into modern times was aided by its use in KJV, the Marriage Service, in poetry (where it is commonly used as a rhyme word), and in oral use where it is necessary to be clear that two and not to or too is meant.

  1. derived from *dwóh₁✻
  2. derived from *twai✻
  3. derived from *twai-✻
  4. inherited from twēġen
  5. inherited from tweyne

Definitions

  1. two

    • But the warm twilight round us twain will never rise again.
    • Bring me these twain cups of wine and water, and let us drink from the one we feel more befitting of this day.
    • Since I haue your good leaue to goe away, I will make haſt; but till I come againe, No bed ſhall ere be guilty of my ſtay, Nor reſt be interpoſer twixt vs twaine.

  2. twofold

  3. Pair, couple.

    • The susceptible twain, on the search for adventure, dropped in.
    • The twain immediately proffered their companionship. ‘I will come with you,’ said Mr Lessingham. ‘And I,’ echoed Sydney.
  4. ›+ 4 more definitions

    1. To part in twain

      To part in twain; divide; sunder.

    2. A standard software protocol and applications programming interface (API) that regulates…

      A standard software protocol and applications programming interface (API) that regulates communication between software applications and imaging devices such as scanners and digital cameras.

    3. A surname.

    4. A census-designated place in Plumas County, California, United States.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for twain. 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