þearle

Old English

Etymology

From þearl (severe, harsh) +‎ -e

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈθæ͜ɑr.le/, [ˈθæ͜ɑrˠ.le]

Adverb

þearle (comparative þearlor, superlative þearlost)

  1. very hard, keenly, harshly, severely
    • Homilies of the Anglo-Saxon Church
      Đā ġesēah hē swymman sċealfran on flōde, and ġelōme doppettan ādūne tō grunde, ēhtende ðearle þǣre ēa fixa.
      Then he saw loons swim in the water, and often dive down toward the bottom, eagerly chasing the fish of the river.
  2. greatly
    • c. 992, Ælfric, "On the Nativity of our Lord"
      María wæs ða cuma ðær, swā swā þæt godspel ús segð; and for ðæs folces geðryle wæs þæt gesthus ðearle genyrwed.
      Mary was there a stranger, as the gospel tells us; and through the concourse of people the inn was greatly crowded.