wheat English · revision 10530

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=before 830|origins=ang hwǣte}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /wiːt/, /hwiːt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|ang|hwǣte]] (before 830),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[m|gem-pro|*hwaitjaz]],^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) cognate with Old Saxon hwēti, Dutch weit, German Weizen, Old Norse hveiti and Gothic hwaiteis.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) It is related to [[white]],^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998)^(MWU 2024) presumably for the pale colour of its flour.^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The grain of the cereal, ground for flour: about 825.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The plant itself is from about 950.^(OED 1989) Wheat has been set against chaff and tares in proverbial and allusive use since before 1225,^(OED 1989) and ''to separate the wheat from the chaff'' goes back to John the Baptist's words in Matthew and Luke.^(Cresswell 2021) The pale gold colour of ripe wheat is from 1915.^(OED 1989) ''Wheaten'' is Old English hwǣten.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 825 – the grain.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 950 – the plant.^(OED 1989)

+ * before 1225 – opposed to chaff.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1915 – a pale gold colour.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Any of several [[cereal]] grasses of the genus ''Triticum'', widely grown in temperate regions.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The [[grain]] of these grasses, ground for [[flour]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[wheatless]]

+ * [[wheaten]]

+ * [[wheatland]]

+ * [[whole-wheat]]

+ * [[cracked wheat]]

+ * [[shredded wheat]]

+ * [[soft wheat]]

+ * [[wheat bread]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[white]]

+ * [[emmer]]

+ * [[durum]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}