knaw

English

Etymology 1

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Verb

knaw (third-person singular simple present knaws, present participle knawing, simple past and past participle knawed)

  1. Archaic spelling of gnaw.

Etymology 2

Verb

knaw (third-person singular simple present knaws, present participle knawing, simple past knawed, past participle knawn)

  1. Nonstandard form of know.

Anagrams

Middle English

Noun

knaw

  1. alternative form of knave

Middle Welsh

Etymology

Probably borrowed from Old Irish cnáim (“bone”),[1] but at any rate ultimately from Proto-Celtic *knāmis, from Proto-Indo-European *kónh₂m (“leg”). Cognate with Ancient Greek κνήμη (knḗmē, “tibia”) and English ham.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /knau̯/

Noun

knaw m (plural kneu or knouein)

  1. bone
  2. skull

Descendants

  • ⇒ Welsh: pencnaw (“end of a bone”)

Mutation

Mutated forms of knaw
radical soft nasal aspirate
knaw gnaw knaw / chnaw
pronounced with /ŋ̊-/		 chnaw

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Middle Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

  1. ^ Matasović, Ranko (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 211

Further reading

  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “cnaw”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
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