wield
/wiːld/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.21 in modern English
9
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To exercise (authority or influence) effectively.
name
Acronym of Western Institute for Endangered Language Documentation.
Example Sentences
- "The question isn't whether AI will reshape human society—it's whether its engineers will wield that power thoughtfully."
- "There was never kyng sauff myselff that welded evir such knyghtes. There was never a king other than myself who ever commanded such knights."
- "With such his chearefull speaches he doth wield / Her mind so well, that to his will she bends[…]."
- "All is weill done, God wate, weild he hys will."
- "What boots it if I beat the heathen home, And fold the mountains in my wield, and fire […]"
- "[…] telling him of the treasures concealed in the cave, of the mysterious ring and tarnhelmet, possessing which he can hold the wield of the world."
Etymology
From Middle English welden, from the merger of Old English wealdan (“to control, rule”) (strong class 7) and Old English wieldan (“to control, subdue”) (weak). Both verbs derive from Proto-West Germanic *waldan and *waldijan, respectively; and are ultimately from Proto-Germanic *waldaną (“to rule”). The reason for the merger was that in Middle English the -d in the stem made it hard to distinguish between strong and weak forms in the past tense.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Usage
Inflected Forms
wields (present, singular)
wielding (participle, present)
wielded (participle, past)
wielded (past)
wields (plural)
welde (alternative, obsolete)
weild (alternative, obsolete)
weelde (alternative, obsolete)