Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

wither-

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.02 in modern English

Syllables
with-er-
IPA
12
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

prefix

Against, in opposition to; in return; counter-; contrary (to); in the opposite direction (of or to); backwards.

British usage

Etymology

From Middle English wither-, from Old English wiþer- (“again, against”), from Proto-West Germanic *wiþra-, from Proto-Germanic *wiþrą (“against, toward”), from Proto-Indo-European *wī-tero- (“further apart”), *wī- (“separate, alone”). Cognate with Low German wedder (“against”), Dutch weer (“again, back”), German wider (“against, contrary to”), wieder (“again”). More at with.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: wither-, wiþer-, *wiþra-, *wiþrą, *wī-tero-

Usage

Inflected Forms

weather- (alternative) wother- (alternative) widder- (alternative)

Derived Forms

witherband witherblench withercraft witherlaw witherling withernam withersake withershins witherward witherweight witherwin witherwrung

Questions

What does wither- mean?
Against, in opposition to; in return; counter-; contrary (to); in the opposite direction (of or to); backwards.
Where does wither- come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce wither-

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “wither-”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
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  4. Repeat and practice — Say “wither-” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.