withal
/wɪˈðɑl/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.17 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
prep
with.
Archaic
Example Sentences
- "[T]hey not onely damne [William] Tyndals tranſlacion [of the Bible], (wherein ther is good cauſe) but ouer that doe damne al other, and as though a ley manne wer no chritſen manne, wyll ſuffer no leye manne haue any at all. But whan they fynde any in his keping, they laye hereſye to hym therefore. And thereupon they burne vp the booke, and ſometime the good manne withall, […]"
- "Loue he ſaied to be the occupacion or buſineſſe of idle folkes, that had nothinge els to ſet them ſelues on werke withall."
- "For why his beauty (my hearts thiefe) affirmeth, / Piercing no skin (the bodies fensiue wall) / And hauing leaue, and free consent withall, / Himselfe not guilty, whom loue guilty tearmeth, […]"
- "For it ſeemeth to me vnreaſonable, to ſend a priſoner, and not withall to ſignifie the crimes laid againſt him."
- "It is the common vvonder of all men hovv among ſo many millions of faces there ſhould be none alike: Novv contrary, I vvonder as much hovv there ſhould be any; he that ſhall conſider hovv many thouſand ſeverall vvords have beene careleſly and vvithout ſtudy compoſed out of 24 Letters; vvithall hovv many hundred lines there are to be dravvne in the fabricke of one man; ſhall eaſily finde that this variety is neceſſary: […]"
- "Understand, this Firſt-ling [the wallflower] vvas / Once a briſk and bonny Laſſe, / VVho a ſprightly Springall lov'd, / And to have it fully prov'd, / Up ſhe got upon a vvall, / Tempting dovvn to ſlide vvithall: / But the ſilken tvviſt unty'd, / So ſhe fell; and bruis'd, ſhe dy'd."
Etymology
PIE word *wí The adverb is derived from Middle English withal, with-al, withalle (“against, in opposition to; in association with, together with; by means of”), from with (“against; close to, near; directly opposite to; in the company of, together with; on, upon; within; etc.”, preposition) + al (“total number in a group, all, everyone, everything”). The word displaced Old English mid ealle. The postposition is derived from the adverb.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₂el-, withal
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /wɪˈðɑl/
- British English: /wɪˈðɔːl/