Wordwyrt

worry

/ˈwɜːi/WUR-ee
/ˈwɝi/WUR-ee

Meaningto strangle, harm

Common meaning: feel anxious or cause concern

Journey through time

  1. Aryan root · reconstructed√WARGH‘choke, strangle, worry’No written record; from Skeat’s list of Aryan roots, no. 358, p. 743 · scan
  2. Old Englishwyrgan‘to strangle, harm’sourceB&T
  3. Middle Englishworowen‘strangle’source
  4. Englishmeaning shiftsstrangle → feel anxious or cause concernworry‘feel anxious or cause concern’ · today

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
  • No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
  • US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
  • No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Old English wyrgan ‘to strangle, harm’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Skeat, Concise Etymological Dictionary (1911), entry WORRY, p. 616 · dictionary scan

Roots

  • wyrgan Old English “to strangle, harm”

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