List of archaic English words and their modern equivalents
The following is a list of words and spellings which are now considered archaic or obsolescent for one reason or another within the current conception of the English language. Given both the rapidity of change in modern English and the number of versions espoused by various nations and cultures, it should be strongly borne in mind that dates are approximate and intimations of obsolescence may be localised.
It should further be noted that obsolescence is a relative term, and that English language as it has evolved over the years is characterised by four phases, the edges of which are rather more blurred than perhaps the nomenclature would suggest. The first period dates from approximately 450 to 1150 AD. At this time the language made use of full inflection, and is called Anglo-Saxon, or, more terminologically correctly (since many of the speakers of the syncretic tongue e.g. the Danes, the assimilated Celts were not Anglo-Saxon), Old English. The second period dates from about 1150 to 1350 and is called Early English or sometimes Old English (again). During this time the majority of the inflections disappeared, and many French words joined the language because of the profound influence of the Norman French ruling class. The third period dates from about 1350 to 1550, and is known as Middle English. At this time the shape of the language began to coalesce and a relatively standard orthography emerged. The last period, from about 1550, is called Modern English.
The impact of dictionaries should not be underestimated in respect of the definition of obsolescent or archaic forms. The standardisation of spelling caused many variant forms to be consigned to the dustbin of history.
It should be noted that often poets and/or writers of prose with a very strong feel for the language may on occasion deliberately choose to employ or otherwise make use of archaisms to emphasise a certain point or to heighten a mood.
Often what we conceive of as archaisms are often very modern forms indeed in relative terms!
Original word
Origin
Meaning
Example
Approx. Date of obsolescence
Comments
bilbo
From Bilbao the best known place of manufacture
an obscure and seldom used word for a short sword
N/A
unknown
Bilbo Baggins is a fictional character
bobbish
unknown
to be in good health
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
Bouncable
unknown
a swaggering boaster
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
Bridewell
unknown
a prison
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
cag-mag
unknown
decaying meat
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
chalk scores
unknown
a reference to accounts of debt, recorded with chalk marks
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
coddleshell
unknown
codicil; a modification to one's legal will
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
Coiner
unknown
a counterfeiter
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
cove
unknown
a fellow or chap
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
drab
unknown
a whore
N/A
unknown
Used in Shakespeare's Macbeth: "Finger of birth-strangled babe, ditch-delivered by a drab."
dream
A part of the root stock of the OE vocabulary.
joy
N/A
before the 13th century
Under the influence of Old Norse speakers in England, the phoneme dream changed its meaning from ``joy, festivity, noisy merriment" to ``a sleeping vision".
fire a rick
unknown
to burn a stack of hay (rick), as a form of protest
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
fluey
unknown
dusty
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
gaole
unknown
gaol alt. British English spelling of jail
N/A
mid-19th century
Grinder
unknown
a tutor who prepares students for examinations
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
heddes
unknown
heads
N/A
c. 1650s
Indya
unknown
India
N/A
c. 1860
This spelling is still (occasionally) in use today.
ivory tablets
unknown
paper for notetaking
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
kyne
unknown
old plural of 'cow'
N/A
unknown
Used until late 1800s
over the broomstick
unknown
to be married in a folk ceremony and not recognized by the law
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s, "over the brush" still used in British English Cf jumping the broomstick
quantum
unknown
money to pay a bill
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s. Still used in this sense in some legal terminology.
Quene
OE. cwen (meaning a queen, a woman or a wife)
Queen
N/A
c. 1650s
rantipole
unknown
to behave in a romping or rude manner
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
read with
unknown
to tutor
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
shake-down
unknown
a bed
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s, also a modern slang term dealing with law enforcement
stand high
unknown
to have a good reputation
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
whitesmith
unknown
a tinsmith
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s
whitlow
unknown
a sore or swelling in a finger or thumb
N/A
unknown
Used in 1860s, still used in British English
wittles
from "victuals"
food
N/A
?
Used in 1860s, vittles still used in British English
zounds
unknown
expletive
N/A
?
abbreviation for "god's wounds"