druid
/ˈdɹu.ɪd/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.99 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
One of an order of priests among certain groups of Celts before the adoption of Abrahamic religions.
noun
Alternative letter-case form of druid.
Example Sentences
- "You can find hundreds of Druids at Stonehenge."
Etymology
Borrowed from French druide, from Old French, via Latin Druidae, from Gaulish *druwits, from Proto-Celtic *druwits (literally either “oak-knower” or “firm knower, great sage”), from either Proto-Indo-European *dóru (“tree”) or *drew- (“solid, firm, hard”) and *weyd- (“to see, to have knowledge”) (whence also English wizard; Proto-Slavic *vědьma (> Russian ве́дьма (védʹma))). The earliest record of the term in Latin is by Julius Caesar in the first century B.C. in his De Bello Gallico. The native Celtic word for "druid" is first attested in Latin texts as druides (plural) and other texts also employ the form druidae (akin to the Greek form). Cognate with the later insular Celtic words, Old Irish druí (“druid, sorcerer”) and early Welsh dryw (“seer”).
Origin
- Source language: French
Word Breakdown
- Root: *weyd-, druide, -, Druidae, *druwits, *dóru
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈdɹu.ɪd/
- British English: /ˈdɹuːɪd/
Subject
Wiktionary places this term in Religion.