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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

forspan en · VERB · etymology 1

Etymology

From Middle English forspannen, forspanen, from Old English forspanan (“to mislead, lead astray, seduce, entice”), from Proto-Germanic *farspananą, *fraspananą (“to allure”), equivalent to for- + span. Cognate with Middle High German verspanen (“to tempt, entice”).

Meanings

  1. (obsolete, transitive) To entice; seduce.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
forspanned Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
forspanned Tense=Past lexicographic
forspans Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres lexicographic
forspanning Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part lexicographic

forspan en · NOUN · etymology 2

Etymology

From fore- + span.

Meanings

  1. (uncountable) Foresight; the ability to see, predict, or perceive future events.
    • In a remote age and country we find Njal, the hero of the Njal's saga, credited with forspan, or the gift of beholding such shadowy apparitions of future events — a power carefully distinguished from ordinary clear-sighted wisdom. 1902, Day Otis Kellogg, Thomas Spencer Baynes, William Robertson Smith, The Encyclopaedia Britannica: