andweardnes

Old English

Etymology

Equivalent to andweard +‎ -nes.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈɑndˌwæ͜ɑrd.nes/, [ˈɑndˌwæ͜ɑrˠd.nes]

Noun

andweardnes f

  1. the present
  2. presence
    • Homilies of the Anglo-Saxon Church
      Þā besēah Martinus wið þǣs sċeoccan lēoht, ġemyndiġ on mōde hū sē Metoda Drihten cwæð on his godspelle þe his godcundan tōcyme, and cwæð tō ðām lēasan mid ġelǣredum mūðe, "Ne sǣde ūre Hǣlend þæt hē swā wolde bēon mid purpuran gehīwod, oððe mid helme scīnende, þonne hē eft cōme mid engla ðrymme." Đā fordwān sē deofol drēoriġ him fram, and sēo stōw ðā stanc mid ormǣtum stenċe, æfter andwerdnysse þǣs eġeslīċan gāstes.
      Then Martinus beheld the demon's light, mindful of what the Lord God said in his gospel about his divine coming, and said to the false one with learned mouth, "Our Savior did not say that he would be habited in purple, or that he would have a shining crown, when he came again with a host of angels." Then the sad devil disappeared, and the place stank with a powerful stench after the presence of the horrible spirit.

Usage notes

In the sense "the present," andweardnes was used without the word "the," like forþġewitennes (the past) and tōweardnes (the future): Andweardnesse wyrttruman liċġaþ bebyrġede on forðġewitennesse (“The roots of the present lie buried in the past”).

Declension

Strong ō-stem:

singular plural
nominative andweardnes andweardnessa, andweardnesse
accusative andweardnesse andweardnessa, andweardnesse
genitive andweardnesse andweardnessa
dative andweardnesse andweardnessum