Dictionary

drighten en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• [ˈdʒɹəɪ.ʔɪn] (General-American)
• /ˈdɹaɪ.tən/
• [ˈd(ʒ)ɹaɪ.tɪn] (General-American)

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle English drighte, drightin and its etymon Old English dryhten (“a ruler, king, lord, prince, the supreme ruler, the Lord, God, Christ”), from Proto-West Germanic *druhtin, from Proto-Germanic *druhtinaz (“leader, chief, lord”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰrewgʰ- (“to hold, hold fast, support”). Cognate with Old Frisian drochten (“lord”), Old Saxon drohtin (“lord”), Old High German truhtin, Middle High German truhten, trohten (“ruler, lord”) (obsolete German Trechtin, Trechtein (“lord, God”)), Danish drot (“king”), Swedish drott (“king, ruler, sovereign”), Icelandic dróttinn (“hero, ruler, lord”), Finnish ruhtinas (“sovereign prince”). Related also to Old English dryht (“troop, army”), Old English ġedryht (“troop, body of men”), Old English drēogan (“to serve in the military, endure”). More at dree. By surface analysis, dright (“army, host”) + -en.

Meanings

1. (Norse, historical, qualifier:Anglo-Saxon; paganism or puristic; otherwise obsolete; Anglo-Saxon; paganism or puristic; otherwise obsolete) A lord; ruler; sovereign; chief; leader; prince.
   • Believe me, my drighten, there is not one of us that has ever slacked on watch before! 2010, Stephan Grundy, Beowulf:
2. (capitalized, obsolete, usually) The Lord; Lord God; Christ.

Forms