Where did “bethink” come from? Swipe through its history. #words #vocabulary
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KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS WORD: bethink. Say it: /bɪˈθɪŋk/ Meaning: To consider or ponder something carefully.
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THE STORY: Where it started. Bethink descends from Old English beþencan, formed with be- and þencan, the ancestor of think. Old English and Middle English evidence gives senses including thinking about, considering, remembering, reflecting, and pondering.
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NEXT: What changed. The word often became reflexive: to bethink oneself is to recall or bring something under consideration. Its inherited strong forms survive in bethought, used for both the past tense and past participle.
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NOW: Why it matters. Bethink looks like a playful modern invention, but it is an Old English survivor. Its ancestors meant to consider, remember, or reflect. Best detail: its past tense is bethought.
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YOUR TURN: What about you?. What does bethink add that ordinary think no longer does?