Old English

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Old English numbers (edit)
20
 ←  1 2 3  → 
    Cardinal: twēġen
    Ordinal: ōþer
    Adverbial: tweowa
    Age: twiwintre
    Multiplier: twifeald

Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Proto-West Germanic *twai-: cognate with Old Saxon and Old Dutch twēne, Old High German zwēne, whence archaic German zween, compare German zwei.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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twēġen

  1. two
    • late 10th century, Ælfric, "Preface to Genesis"[1]:
      God ġesċōp ūs twā ēagan and twā ēaran, twā nosþȳrlu and twēġen weoloras, twā handa and twēġen fēt.
      God gave us two eyes and two ears, two nostrils and two lips, two hands and two feet.

Usage notes

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  • The masculine form twēġen is almost never used in complex numerals. Hence "twenty-two people" is twā and twēntiġ manna, not *twēġen and twēntiġ, and "the twenty-second person" is sē twā and twēntigoþa mann, even though mann ("person") is a masculine noun.
  • In poetry, neuter nouns are usually used with . However, in prose, they often occur with twā instead, especially in Late West Saxon prose, where is almost completely absent.

Declension

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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