Page:An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language.djvu/140

---

Gewalt, f., ‘power, authority, force,’ from the equiv. MidHG. gewalt, m., f., OHG. giwalt, m., f.; allied to walten.

Gewand, n., ‘garment, dress, garb,’ from MidHG. gewant(d), n., ‘clothing, armour, dress stuff, material’ (with the last meaning ModHG. Gewandhaus is connected); OHG. only in the late recorded compound, badagiwant(t), ‘vestis mutatoria.’ The older word for ‘Gewand’ was MidHG. gewœte, OHG. giwâti, also OHG. and MidHG. wât. OHG. giwant, appears as ‘turning, winding,’ and upon this sense (‘enveloping’) the meaning ‘clothing’ is based; comp. Lat. toga, from tegere, ‘to cover.’ See winden. —

gewandt, ‘skilled, proficient, adroit,’ partic. of wenden.

gewärtig, adj., ‘expectant, attentive,’ from MidHG. gewęrtec, ‘careful, obliging’; allied to MidHG. gewarten, ‘to hold oneself ready, watch with observant eyes in order to be ready, for a service, or to admit visitors,’ &c. See warten.

Gewehr, n., ‘weapon of defence, gun, musket,’ from MidHG. gewęr, f. n., ‘guard, defence, bulwark, weapon; even in OHG. giwęr, n., ‘weapon, goad,’ węri, ‘rampart, means of defence.’ Allied to wehren.

Geweih, n., ‘horns, antlers,’ from the equiv. MidHG. gewîge (hirzgewîge), n.; in OHG. the corresponding word is wanting; comp. Du. gewicht, n., ‘stag's antlers,’ whence a G. variant Gewicht. The cognates have most frequently been connected with the OTeut. root wī̆g, ‘to fight’ (see Weigand); Geweih would then be regarded as the weapon of the stag.

Gewerbe, n., ‘mode of acquisition, trade, craft, from MidHG. gewërbe, n., ‘activity, business’; allied to werben.

Gewicht, n., ‘antlers,’ see Geweih. — Gewicht, n.. ‘weight,’ from the equiv. MidHG. gewiht, gewihte, n.; OHG. *giwiht; verbal abstract of wiegen; corresponding to AS. gewiht, E. weight, Du. gewigt, OIc. vœtt.

gewiegt, adj., ModHG. only, prop. a partic. of wiegen, ‘to rock,’ hence in etwas gewiegt, ‘rocked into something,’ i.e. ‘trained up, grown proficient in something.’

gewinnen, vb., ‘to win, acquire, prevail on, conquer,’ from MidHG. gewinnen, OHG. giwinnan, ‘to attain by work, effort, victory, earn something, conquer, get,’ besides which are found MidHG. winnen, OHG. winnan, ‘to toil hard, contend’; corresponding to Goth. winnan (gawinnan),

‘to suffer, feel pain, torment oneself’ (allied to wunns and winnô, f., ‘suffering,’ OHG. winna, ‘strife, MidHG. winne, ‘pain’), OIc. vinna, ‘to work, perform, win,’ AS. winnan, ‘to contend, exert oneself, E. to win, Du. gewinnen. The primary meaning of the Teut. root winn is ‘to toil hard’ (especially used of toiling in fight). Whether OHG. wini, AS. wine, ‘friend,’ and ModHG. Wenne also belong to the same root is doubtful; yet the primit. allied Sans. root van signifies ‘to procure for oneself, obtain, assist in obtaining, conquer,’ and ‘to be fond of, favourable to.’

Gewissen, n.,‘conscience,’ from MidHG. gewiȥȥen, f. n., ‘knowledge, information, privity, inner consciousness, conscience,’ even in OHG. giwiȥȥanî, f., ‘conscience’ (Du. geweten); probably an imitation of Lat. conscientia (G. ge equiv. to Lat. con, as in Gevatter), comp. also barmherzig; in Goth. midwissei. OHG. giwiȥȥanî is most closely connected with wissen, THG. infin wiȥȥan.

gewiß, adj. and adv., ‘sure(ly), certain(ly), confident(ly),’ from the equiv. MidHG. gewis(ss), adj., gewisse, adv., OHG. gewis(ss), adj., gewisso, adv., ‘certain, sure, reliable’; corresponding to Du. wis, gewis; Goth only in unwisa- (misspelt for *unwissa), ‘uncertain.’ The OTeut. wissa (gawissa-) is an old partic. of the Goth. pret.-pres. witan, OHG. wiȥȥan (see wissen), from witta-, widto- (allied to the Aryan root vid). With regard to the pregnant meaning, ‘what is certainly known,’ for ‘what is known,’ comp. laut, lit. ‘what is heard.’

Gewitter, n., ‘thunder-storm,’ from MidHG. gewitere, OHG. giwitiri, ‘bad weather’; collective of Wetter; corresponding to OSax. giwidiri, Goth. *gawidri, n. The ModHG. meaning is wanting in OHG. and MidHG. OHG. giwitiri may also mean ‘hail.’

gewogen, adj., ‘favourably inclined,’ from MidHG. gewëgen, ‘important, inclined’; prop. a partic. of MidHG. gewëgen, ‘to be weighty, adequate, help.’ See wägen.

gewöhnen, vb., ‘to accustom, inure, habituate,’ from the equiv. MidHG. gewęnen, OHG. giwęnnan (pret. giwenita); corresponding to Du. gewennen, AS. gewęnnan, OIc. venja, Goth. wanjan, ‘to accustom’; derived from an old adj. or rather partic. wana-, ‘accustomed’ (OIc. vanr); for this word a parallel form was chiefly used, the