wepman

Middle English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Inherited from Old English wǣpman, wēpman,^[1] from earlier wǣpnmann, wǣpnedmann; by surface analysis, wepen (“weapon, penis”) +‎ man (“man”).

The Southwest Midland form weopmon shows a development of /ɛ/ into /œ/ under the influence of the preceding /w/ and the following labial (like hweolp, tweolf, weob).^[2]

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈwɛpˌman/, /ˈwapˌman/
(West Midland) IPA^(key): /ˈwɛpˌmɔn/, /ˈwœpˌmɔn/

Noun

wepman (plural wepmen)

(chiefly Early Middle English) A man; a person of male gender or sex.

References

^ “wē̆pman, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
^ Jordan, Richard (1974), Eugene Crook, transl., Handbook of the Middle English Grammar: Phonology (Janua Linguarum. Series Practica; 218)‎^[1], The Hague: Mouton & Co. N.V., →DOI, § 34, page 59.

[1] “wē̆pman, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

[2] Jordan, Richard (1974), Eugene Crook, transl., Handbook of the Middle English Grammar: Phonology (Janua Linguarum. Series Practica; 218)‎^[1], The Hague: Mouton & Co. N.V., →DOI, § 34, page 59.

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