Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

eldmother

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: el-d-moth-er
IPA

15

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

4

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

One's grandmother or other female ancestor, or one's mother-in-law.

Archaic

Example Sentences

"Item I gyve vnto my eldmother his wyffe my wyffes froke and a read petticote and a smoke."
"John Morpeth [...] saith that, on Sondaie last [...] the said John Robson said to the said Arthure, "Thou haiest a witch to thy eldmother[.]""

Etymology

From Middle English eldmoder, from Old English eald mōdor (“grandmother”), equivalent to eld (“old”) + mother. Cognate with Scots eldmoder, eldmother (“mother-in-law”), Old Frisian aldemōder.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: eldmoder, eald mōdor

Usage

Archaic

Inflected Forms

eldmothers (plural) eldermother (alternative)

Frequently Paired Words

eldfather

Questions

What does eldmother mean?: One's grandmother or other female ancestor, or one's mother-in-law.
Where does eldmother come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce eldmother

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