weald

From Middle English weeld, wæld, (also wold, wald > English wold), from Old English weald, from Proto-Germanic *walþuz. Compare German Wald, Dutch woud. See also wold, ultimately of the same origin.

• (UK) IPA^(key): /wiːld/
• Homophone: wield
• Rhymes: -iːld

weald (plural wealds)

1. (archaic) A wood or forest
2. (archaic) An open country
   • Tennyson

     Fled all night long by glimmering waste and weald, / And heard the spirits of the waste and weald / Moan as she fled.

In modern usage, the term is seldom used, but is retained in place names, for example The Weald, Wealdstone, Harrow Weald.

• Harrow Weald
• wealdish

• wold
• wald

• dwale, lawed, waled

• ƿeald, wald

• IPA^(key): /wæɑld/

From Proto-Germanic *walþuz, whence also Old High German wald (German Wald) and Old Norse vǫllr (Faroese vøllur, Norwegian voll, Icelandic völlur). See also the related Anglian-derived term wald.

weald m

1. forest

A u-stem dative singular form, wealda, is also attested.

• Middle English: wald, wæld, wold, wolde, wald, walde, weld, welde
  • English: wold, weald, wald, weld
  • Scots: wald

From Proto-Germanic *waldą, whence also Old High German walt, Old Norse vald (Danish vold).

weald n

1. power
2. authority

• ġeweald