weg

weg¹ road, way

Pronunciation

• /ʋɛx/^[1]

Forms

weg m (plural wegen, diminutive wegje n or weggetje n)^[1] Older and regional forms are weeg, with the vowel lengthened from the inflected wege, and weug in southern West Flanders.^[2] Wegt, with a hypercorrect -t, survived after the 17th century only in Holland, Utrecht and Zeeland.^[2]

Etymology

The noun is inherited from Middle Dutch wech, inherited from Old Dutch weg, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *weg, inherited from Proto-Germanic *wegaz (“way”).^[3][1][4] The same word is Old Saxon weg, Old High German weg (modern German Weg), Old Frisian wei (modern West Frisian wei), Old English weg (modern English way), Old Norse vegr and Gothic 𐍅𐌹𐌲𐍃 (wigs).^[3][5] Kroonen derives it from the strong verb *weganą (“to move, carry”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to move, convey”), the root also of wegen, bewegen and wagen.^[4][1][5][3] Compare Lithuanian vėžė (“wheel track”).^[6][5]

Because “journey” stands closest to the verbal sense “to ride”, the EWN thinks it may well be the original meaning of the Germanic noun; from it came “path, route”, and figuratively “course of life” and “manner”.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The oldest record is the place name Uuaganuuega “wagon road”, an unidentified place in the Veluwe, in a document of 838 known from an 11th-century copy.^[3][7] In the Wachtendonck Psalms of the 10th century, uueg uuirkit imo means “make a way for him”, and uueg is also a person's path through life.^[3][8] A Middle Dutch text of about 1200 has Di wege si samenen sig al da, “the roads all meet there”.^[3][9]

Semantic evolution

In the 13th century wech meant a journey or pilgrimage, a road, a right of way, a direction, and also a manner, for example in anderwege “in other ways” (1248–1271).^[9][3] A Ghent confraternity of St James swore in 1270 bi haren weghe, by their pilgrimage.^[10] Biblical language set de brede weg, the broad way of sin, against the narrow path of virtue.^[11] Inflected forms of the noun gave the prepositions wegens and vanwege and the adverb halverwege.^[1]

In modern Dutch weg is above all a road for traffic, a route, and a means to an end.^[12][13] French took the word as houache, the wake of a ship.^[14] It lives on in Afrikaans weg.^[1]

Timeline

• 838 – The place name Uuaganuuega is recorded.^[3][7]
• 901–1000 – Uueg “way” appears in the Wachtendonck Psalms.^[3][8]
• c. 1200 – Middle Dutch wech is first recorded, in Limburg.^[9]
• 1248–1271 – The sense “manner” is recorded.^[3]
• 1270 – A Ghent oath bi haren weghe.^[10]

Meanings

Noun

1. A road, strip of ground made for traffic: De weg naar het dorp is smal.^[12][13][1]
2. A route, the way to a place: Weet jij de weg naar het station?^[12][13]
3. A means of reaching an end; a course of action.^[13][12]
4. A way of life, conduct.^[12]
5. A manner, way.^[1]

Word family

• wegens
• vanwege
• halverwege
• achterwege
• deswege
• omweg
• snelweg
• rijksweg
• straatweg
• wegdek
• wegenbouw
• wegennet
• wegel
• weegbree

weg² away

Pronunciation

• /ʋɛx/^[1]

Forms

weg (adverb)^[1] An older form eweg is still regional, chiefly in Flanders.^[2] Flemish wei, chiefly in wei en weder, goes back to an inflected wege.^[2]

Etymology

The adverb is inherited from Middle Dutch wech, shortened from enwech (also ⟨ewech⟩), from Middle Dutch en (“in, on”) + wech (“way”): ⟨en⟩ is the unstressed form of the preposition in and ⟨wech⟩ is the noun weg¹.^[3][2][6] The phrase meant literally “on one's way, setting out”, but it became a full adverb early on.^[3] The same formation is Middle Low German enwech, Old High German in weg (later enwec, modern German weg), Old Frisian awei, Old English on weg (modern English away) and Swedish i väg.^[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Middle Dutch wech first appears with verbs of motion, as in Newar alse en gands woch wille gan, “but when a healthy man wants to go away” (1236).^[3][9] Wech gheuen follows in 1254, and Es hi met hasten wech gereden, “he has ridden away in haste”, in 1265–1270.^[3] As an independent adverb it is first found in West Flanders in 1285: Alse wech waren die viande, “when the enemies were gone”.^[3][9][7]

Semantic evolution

In Oudenaarde in 1291 wech hebben meant to have already received something.^[9] Flemish had a form och, and och ende weder meant “to and fro”.^[15] A 16th-century formula dits wech announced one's departure, and Weg wezen! urges someone to make off.^[2] With a weakened sense “on, further”, -weg forms adverbs from adjectives, such as botweg, eenvoudigweg and plompweg.^[3][2] In slang weg can mean very drunk.^[1]

The adverb was borrowed into Danish (væk) and Norwegian (vekk), from Dutch or Low German, into Negerhollands, and into Papiamentu as wèg “to send away”.^[14] It lives on in Afrikaans weg.^[1]

Timeline

• 1236 – Woch “away” is first recorded with a verb of motion.^[3][9]
• 1285 – Wech “gone” appears as an independent adverb, in West Flanders.^[3][9][7]
• 1291 – Wech hebben “to have received already” is recorded in Oudenaarde.^[9]
• 1514 – The earliest quotation in the Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal.^[2]
• 1516 – The formula dits wech “I am off”.^[2]

Meanings

Adverb

1. away, from this place: Ga weg!^[2][1]
2. Gone, disappeared, lost: Mijn sleutels zijn weg.^[2][1]
3. With verbs, forming separable verbs: away, off (weggaan, wegnemen).^[2][1]
4. (slang) Very drunk.^[1]

Word family

• weggaan
• wegbrengen
• weghalen
• wegnemen
• wegblijven
• wegkomen
• wegsturen
• verreweg
• botweg
• eenvoudigweg
• plompweg
• -weg