ettle
Intention; intent; aim.
Noun
- Intention; intent; aim.
Origin
From Middle English etlien, atlien, from Old Norse ætla (“to think, mean, suppose, intend, purpose”), from Proto-Germanic *ahtalōną (“to strive, think”), from Proto-Indo-European *ok- (“to think, intend, purpose”). Cognate with regional Swedish ättla (“to count, reckon”). Some Middle English forms perhaps remodelled after Old English eaht.
Forms
Synonyms
Verb Ireland, Northern England
- To propose, intend.
- To direct one's course, to head.
- The Siloam nosed and ettled into the grey sprawl of waves and sent up arcs of swift stinging spray. - 1972, George Mackay Brown, Greenvoe, Polygon, published 2019, page 39:
- To direct (something) to or at someone or something; to aim at.
- To strive, to try.
Forms
Derived
Verb obsolete
- To earn.
Origin
A variation of addle (“to earn”).