smeagan

Old English

FWOTD – 28 December 2018

Alternative forms

smēan, smēaġean
smēġan — Anglian

Etymology

From pre-Old English *smauhōjan,^[1]^[2] an extended form of *smauhōn.^[3] The verb was contracted after loss of intervocalic -h- (compare twēoġan, sċōġan). Equivalent to smēag (“penetrating, acute, subtle, effective, clever”) +‎ -ian. Ultimately from the root of Proto-Germanic *smeuganą (“to creep, slip through”). Akin to Old English smūgan (“to creep, progress gradually or deliberately”), Old Norse smjúga (“to creep”) (> Danish smyge), Old English smyġel (“a burrow, place to creep into”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈsmæ͜ɑː.jɑn/

Verb

smēaġan^[4]

consider, think about
- c. 992, Ælfric, "The Nativity of St. Andrew the Apostle"
  Smēaġað nu hú Drihten mancynne ætbræd wuldor, þæt hé him wuldor forgeafe.
  Consider now how the Lord took glory away from mankind, that he might give them glory.
meditate
examine, scrutinize, question
- Lindisfarne Gospels, Mark 8:11:
  And þa ferdon ða pharisei ⁊ ongunnon mid him smeagean ⁊ tacen of heofone sohton ⁊ his fandedon;
  And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him. (KJV)
- Lindisfarne Gospels, Mark 9:16:
  Þa ahsode he hi, hwæt smeage ge betwux eow;
  And he asked them, What question ye among yourselves?

Conjugation

Conjugation of smēaġan (weak, class 2)

indicative mood	present tense	past tense
infinitive	smēaġan	smēaġenne
first person singular	smēaġe	smēade, smēaġde
second person singular	smēast, smēaġest, smēaġst	smēadest, smēaġdest
third person singular	smēaþ, smēaġeþ, smēaġþ	smēade, smēaġde
plural	smēaġaþ	smēadon, smēaġdon
subjunctive	present tense	past tense
singular	smēaġe	smēade, smēaġde
plural	smēaġen	smēaden, smēaġden
imperative
singular	smēa, smēaġ
plural	smēaġaþ
participle	present	past
	smēaġende	(ġe)smēad

Derived terms

Related terms

smyġel

Descendants

Middle English: smeagen, smegen, smeaȝen, smean

References

^ Ringe, Donald; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English (A Linguistic History of English; 2), Oxford: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 360: “pre-OE *smauhōjan”
^ Hogg, Richard M.; Fulk, R. D. (2011), A Grammar of Old English: Volume 2: Morphology, page 285: “Thus, inf. smēaġan 'consider' reflects NSGmc *smauxō-jan, whilst pres.ind.3sg. smēaþ reflects *smauxō-þ.”
^ Campbell, Alistair (1959), Old English grammar, Oxford University Press, page 335: “The stems from which these were conjugated in Gmc. were *smauχōi̯-, *smauχō-”
^ Hogg, Richard; Fulk, R. D. (2011), A Grammar of Old English, volume 2: Morphology, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 285:
Thus, there were two stems within the OE paradigm, smēaġ- and smēa- [...] and in all dialects but Kt and the dialect of PsGl(A), the latter stem could be substituted for the former, leading to innovations like Bo 41.146.21 smēan pres.subj.pl., Li smēas pres.ind.pl., smēande pres.part. Only in Li smēaġe, Ru2 smēoġe imper.sg. do we see replacement of the latter stem by the former, if these are not in fact infinitives.

[1] Ringe, Donald; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English (A Linguistic History of English; 2), Oxford: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 360: “pre-OE *smauhōjan”

[2] Hogg, Richard M.; Fulk, R. D. (2011), A Grammar of Old English: Volume 2: Morphology, page 285: “Thus, inf. smēaġan 'consider' reflects NSGmc *smauxō-jan, whilst pres.ind.3sg. smēaþ reflects *smauxō-þ.”

[3] Campbell, Alistair (1959), Old English grammar, Oxford University Press, page 335: “The stems from which these were conjugated in Gmc. were *smauχōi̯-, *smauχō-”

[4] Hogg, Richard; Fulk, R. D. (2011), A Grammar of Old English, volume 2: Morphology, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 285:
Thus, there were two stems within the OE paradigm, smēaġ- and smēa- [...] and in all dialects but Kt and the dialect of PsGl(A), the latter stem could be substituted for the former, leading to innovations like Bo 41.146.21 smēan pres.subj.pl., Li smēas pres.ind.pl., smēande pres.part. Only in Li smēaġe, Ru2 smēoġe imper.sg. do we see replacement of the latter stem by the former, if these are not in fact infinitives.

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