hwil

Old English

Alternative forms

hƿīl

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *hwīlu. Cognate with Old Frisian hwīle, Old Saxon hwīla, Old High German wīla, Old Norse hvíla, Gothic 𐍈𐌴𐌹𐌻𐌰 (ƕeila).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /xwiːl/, [ʍiːl]

Noun

hwīl f

while, period of time
sume hwīle ― for a while
lȳtle hwīle ― for a little while
ealle hwīle ― the whole time

Declension

Declension of hwil (strong ō-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	hwīl	hwīla, hwīle
accusative	hwīle	hwīla, hwīle
genitive	hwīle	hwīla
dative	hwīle	hwīlum

Derived terms

ǣmethwīl (“free time”)
bearhtmhwīl (“moment”)
beorhthwīl (“glance”)
ealle hwīle
handhwīl (“moment”)
hwīlstyċċe (“fragment of time”)
hwīlum (“sometimes”)
hwīlwende (“temporary”)
nūhwīlum (“nowadays”)
þā hwīle þe (“while”) (conjunction)

Descendants

Middle English: whyle, while, hwile, qhyle, wile
- English: while
- Scots: while
- Yola: while

References

Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898), “HWÍL”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.