Staff G of the English Wordbook.
Basic abbreviations:
- OE = Old English
- ME = Middle English
- PG = Or-theedish
- SC = Scots
- SW = Swedish
- Dan. = Danish
- ON = Old Norse
- OS = Old Saxon
- NHG = New Hightheech
- IC = Icelandish
- H.IC = High Icelandish
- Du. = Netherlandish
- Fris. = Freesish
For a full list of etymological and other abbreviations used in these wordlists, see: Offshortenings.
| Chancery English | Class | Anglish/English | ||
| Attested | Unattested | |||
| gabbling | adj | babbling | tungy, gossipy | |
| galactose | n | - | brainsweet | |
| galaxy | n | spiral: starswirl; Milky Way | starset | |
| galleon | n | - | fleetship, oarsteed | |
| gallery | n | hallway, hall, room(s) | crafthall | |
| galley | n |
- | cookroom; oarship | |
| gallium | n | - | frankstuff | |
| garage | n | - | roadhut, wainhold, wainshed, wagonshed | |
| garden ( this word is ultimately from a Germanic source, through French and Latin) | n | grove, (green)yard | wortyard (< OE wyrtgeard) worttown | |
| gardener (from Germanic source via French and Latin) | n | green thumb, handyman | grover, wortward | |
| gargle | vb | gurgle (cf. NHG gurgeln) | ||
| gargoyle | n | - | waterspewer (cf. NHG Wasserspeier; Du. waterspuwer) | |
| garland | n | wreath, helm | bee | |
| garments | n | clothes, cladding, wearing, clothing | - | |
| garrulous | adj | long-winded, jabber-jawed, talksome, wordy | - | |
| gas | n | wind | loft | |
| gastrolith | n | - | mawstone | |
| gay | adj | blithe, blithesome, blissful, blissome, merry, happy | Samekindloving, samekindlover; fellowbedder | |
| gazebo | n | summerhouse | openhouse, walless house | |
| gecko | n | - | leather athex (< OE hléoðor 'sound voice song-hearing') | |
| gem | n | stone | hurst (< OE hyrst), athelstone (calque) | |
| gender | n | - | asleye (< "a-" + ME "sleye" cf. NHG Geschlecht, Du geslacht)
hade (from Old English hād, from Proto-Germanic *haiduz (“appearance, kind”) | |
| gene | n | - | kinth, shedling | |
| genealogy | n | birth, blood line, breeding, stock |
folktale (< OE folctalu) kinreckonness (< OE cynnreccennes) kinlore, elderlore, forelderlore | |
| general | n | - | hereteme (<OE heretēma) pl: heretemen (<OE heretēman), fyrdlord, lattew (<OE latteow)
hereleader (cf. NHG Heerführer) | |
| general | adj | whole;
broad, overall, rough, widespread | ally (<OE eallic), armen (<OE eormen), mean (<OE mæn), kindly, kinly | |
| generality | n | the whole; breadth | meanliness (<OE gemǽnelicnes) | |
| generally | adv | broadly, mainly, mostly, on the whole, overall; roughly; widely; by and stour | meanly | |
| generate | vb | make, give rise to; beget, breed | ||
| generation | n | time, days, lifetime, span; wave, crop, batch; breeding, begetting | strind, breedstock, kith-end (Scots), kneeris (<OE cnēoris) pl: kneerisse (<cnēorissa) | |
| generic | adj | wide, sweeping, broad-brush, overall | - | |
| generous | adj | kind, openhanded, giving | givel (<OE gifol) | |
| generously | adv | kindly, handsomely, freely | gively | |
| genesis | n | beginning, start | - | |
| genetics | n | - | kinthlore, kindlore | |
| genial | adj | mellow, nice, sweet; hail-fellow-well-met, hearty, matey, neighbourly, warm-hearted; mild, soft | lithe | |
| genie | n | - | wishghost | |
| genitive case | n | - | owningly (<OE agniendlic), whosefall (refer to German "Wesfall/Wessenfall") | |
| genius | n | brain; head, knack; leaning; clay, self | wittle | |
| genocide | n | - | kinslaughter, folkslaughter, bulkslaughter
folkmurth | |
| genome | n | bequest, growthplot | - | |
| gentle | adj | bland, light, mellow, mild, soft, soothing | smolt | |
| gentleman | n | lord; fellow | athelman, hire (cf. Du. heer, Sw. herre...) | |
| genuflect | vb | kneel, kneebow, kneebend | - | |
| genuine | adj | sound, true, sterling; heartfelt, earnest; straightforward, upfront | eahaft/eaght (<NHG echt) | |
| geography | n | landscape |
earthlore (cf. NHG Erdkunde) landfrod (cf. Ic. landafræði) | |
| geology | n | - | earthfrod (cf. Ic. jarðfræði) | |
| geometry | n | - | shapelore, nooklore, landmete,roomlearning (German:Raumlehre) | |
| geostationary | adj | - | sporfixed | |
| geothermal | adj | - | earthwarmed | |
| geranium | n | cranesbill | - | |
| gerbil | n | - | leaprat | |
| geriatric | n | long-lived, over-the-hill | forolden | |
| germ | n | bug(colloqial) | buggle (bug+le) | |
| German | adj | Deutsch | Theech/Thech, Dutch, High Theech/High Dutch (see German Hochdeutsch) | |
| Germanic | adj | Germanish | Theedish/Thedish (cf. OE Þeodisc) | |
| germanium | n | - | theedstuff | |
| Germany | n | - | Theechland, Dutchland, Theedland, Teutonland | |
| germinate | vb | bud, sprout, shoot, blossom, burst forth, grow up, put forth, take root, spring up | - | |
| gestational | adj | bearingly, bearingsome | - | |
| gesture | n/vb | beckon, flag, wave | shrithing; hoveliness | |
| gesundheit | n | bless you | - | |
| giant | n | - | ettin, ent (<OE) | |
| gigantic | adj | - | entish (<OE entisc) | |
| gigannum (a billion years) | n | trisandyear | ||
| gimlet | n | auger | - | |
| gingiva | n | gum, teeth('s) flesh | - | |
| gingko | n | - | maidenhairwood (cf. NHG Mädchenhaarbaum)
maidenhair (tree) | |
| giraffe | n | - | reachneck, olfhorse/olvendhorse (calque Af. kameelperd) | |
| give (only overset if getting rid of ON words too) | n | - | yive | |
| glacial | adj | icy, biting, cold, freezing, raw, chill, frosty | - | |
| glacier | n | - | icklehead (<OE gicel) | |
| global | adj | worldwide, broad-brush, overall | - | |
| globalisation | n | - | oneworldness, worldspanning, ?beworlding | |
| globe | n | world, earth | worldball (cf. Du. wereldbol)
earthkuggle (cf. NHG Erdkugel) | |
| glorious | adj | bright, shining; wonderful, heavenly |
arsome, merthly, wuldersome, wuldrig, thrymfast (<OE þrymfæst) hoary, hoarly (cf. NHG herrlich) (see Eng. hoar) | |
| glory | n | - |
oar (<OE ár), merth (<OE mærþ) wulder (<OE wuldor) reeth (<OE hrēþ) in war: ashtire (<OE æsctīr) hoariness, hoarlihood (cf. NHG herrlichkeit) | |
| glucose | n | - | mustsweet | |
| glue | vb | stick, fix, seal, fasten, lock |
clithe (cf. OE cliða) | |
| glue | n | lime
sticker, stickiness, lock | - | |
| gluttony | n | greed | fill | |
| glycerine | n | - | sweetlime | |
| glycogeen | n | - | sinewsweet | |
| gnome | n | elf, dwarf, manikin, ghost, fiend | ||
| goblin | n | kobold | covold (cf. NHG Kobolt -> Koben (cove) + Holt (hold))
puckle | |
| goddess | n | - | goddin/gidden (<OE gyden) | |
| godparent | n | godfather, godmother | godsib, godelder | |
| goitre | n | - | swellthroat | |
| go on an expedition | phr | - | fierd (<OE fierdian) | |
| gorilla | n | - | brawnape | |
| gossamer | adj | thin, flimsy | - | |
| govern | vb | lead, hold sway over | rede, sway (arch), steer, rike | |
| governor | n | reeve; head, leader | helmsman, highthane, folk leader | |
| government | n | oversight, stewardship, leadership |
reevedom; lawmoot, redeship ledeward (<OE léodweard), elderdom (<German:Altertum) | |
| GPS | n | earth-finder |
WSF (Worldwide Steadfinding Framework); steadfinder (i.e. the device) | |
| grace | n | meed; kindness; handsomeness |
are ("ay-r" ety. 2), est, held (<OE), lity (OE wlitig) giveness (<OE gifnes), hoveliness; frith (OED) | |
| grace | vb | - | beare (calque of NHG beehren) | |
| gracious | adj | sweet, well-bread, mannerly, | arely; heldsome, open-handed, hende | |
| gradual | adj | steady, even, unhurried | - | |
| gradually | adv | step by step, little by little, bit by bit, steply, stepwise | stepmeal (<OE stæpmælum) | |
| grain | n | corn | ||
| grallatores | n | waders | - | |
| grammar | n | - | speechcraft, staffcraft (<OE stæfcræft), wordlaw | |
| gramophone | n | - | trindplayer (cf. Du. platenspeler, NHG Plattenspieler) | |
| grand | adj | great, lofty, lordly | swith good | |
| grandeur | n | greatness | ||
| grandfather | n | - | eldfather (<OE ealdfæder) | |
| grandiloquent | adj | - | speakle | |
| grandiose | adj |
proud; high-handed, lah-di-dah | - | |
| grandmother | n | - | greatmother, foremother, eldmother (<OE ealdmodor) | |
| granite | n | - | moorstone | |
| grant | vb | give, bestow | yive (cf. ME to give, twin word of give) | |
| grape | n | - | droove (cf. Du. 'druif', NHG 'Traube') wineberry | |
| graphic | n | spelled out | bilthish (calque from Yiddish "bilderish") | |
| graphics tablet | n | drawing pad, writing pad | ||
| graphite | n | lead | writstone | |
| grateful | adj | thankful | queme, thankle | |
| gratitude | n | thank, thankfulness | - | |
| gratuitous | adj | free; needless, groundless, uncalled-for | - | |
| gravity | n | earnestness, heftiness, heaviness, weightfulness |
weightiness physics: weightpull, sweercraft (calque of NHG Schwerkraft, Du. zwaartekracht) | |
| great suffering | n | - | harmquale (<OE hearmcwalu) pl: harmquale (<OE hearmcwala) | |
| grenade | n | - | springapple | |
| gridiron | n | - | bakering | |
| grief | n | ruth, heartache, sorrow | - | |
| grieve | vb | rue, weep, mourn, sorrow, bemoan | - | |
| grocer | n | greenmonger | - | |
| groin | n | lisk | - | |
| group | n | thede, fay, athering, crowd, team, gang, cluster, crop, flock, set, shoal | samming (<OE samnung, cf. Eng. sam (ety. 2)) | |
| gruel | n | - | watermush | |
| grume | n | clot | - | |
| guano | n | dung | batshit | |
| guarantee | vb/n | ice; n: bond, deal | weir (OE 'fence, enclosure') munding (OE mund 'hand palm, trust') | |
| guard | v | watch for, shield, shelter; ward off | bewatch (Eng., cf. NHG bewachen) | |
| guardian | n | keeper, warden, warder, ward | holdand, swinward | |
| guava | n | - | pearberry | |
| guerilla | n | - | warrock
PG *warrō (strife, conflict) + *ukaz (diminutive suffix) OE wyrruc OHG Werrih NHG Wirrich | |
| guide (ultimately from Germanic language, but thorugh Old French) | vb/n | show the way, lead(er), steer | wise(r) (Eng. dialectal) (cf. NHG Weisen, O.Frank. witan) | |
| guillotine | vb/n | head-cutter | bladefaller, Guillotin's deathrig (the Guillotine was named after the man who invented it), swiftkiller, beheading tool, Wilhelm's deathrig (Guillotin is a form of Wilhelm) | |
| guitar | n | - | harpfiddle | |
| guerrilla | n | - | blast uprising, bushwhacking, bushfighting | |
| guinea pig | n | - | seapig (cf. Norw. "marsvin"), gnawpig (cf. Ic. "nuggrís") | |
| gulf | n | bight, cove | - | |
| gullet | n | throat, craw, maw | - | |
| gully | n | draw (shallow) | - | |
| gulp (From English imitative or Flemish or Dutch (prob imitative) source) | vb | - | overswallow | |
| gunpowder | n | - | gundust, blackdust (cf. Eng. black powder) | |
| guy | n | fellow; man, boy, knave | fellow-bedder, man-lover (guy = “homosexual”) | |
| gyroscope | n | - | shiftop, ringwatcher | |
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA
unless otherwise noted.
