wayfare

wayfare

English

Etymology

From Middle English weyfaren, originally in participle form weyfarand, from Old English weġfarende (“wayfaring”), equivalent to way +‎ faring. Cognate with Danish vejfarende (“wayfaring”), Swedish vägfarande, German wegfahren (“to drive away”), Icelandic vegfarandi (“wayfaring”). More at way, fare.

Noun

wayfare (uncountable)

1. (archaic) Travel, journeying.
   • 1827, Sir Walter Scott, The Journal of Sir Walter Scott, 13 May:

     What frightens and disgusts me is those fearful letters from those who have been long dead, to those who linger on their wayfare through this valley of tears.

   • 1886-88, Richard F. Burton, The Supplemental Nights to the Thousand Nights and a Night:

     Now when he had reached the King's capital wherein was Alaeddin, he alighted at one of the Kháns; and, when he had rested from the weariness of wayfare, he donned his dress and went down to wander about the streets, where he never passed a group without hearing them prate about the pavilion and its grandeur and vaunt the beauty of Alaeddin and his lovesomeness, his liberality and generosity, his fine manners and his good morals.

Verb

wayfare (third-person singular simple present wayfares, present participle wayfaring, simple past wayfore or wayfared, past participle wayfaren or wayfared)

1. (intransitive, archaic) To travel; make a journey.
   • Holland

     A certain Laconian, as he wayfared, came unto a place where there dwelt an old friend of his.

   • 1904, Thomas Hardy, The Dynasts, part 1, act 6, sc. 7,

     The sea is their dry land,

     And, as on cobbles you, they wayfare there.

Related terms

• wayfarer
• wayfaring