merveilen

Middle English

Alternative forms

• mervaile, merveylen, merveyle, mervell

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French merveillier; equivalent to merveile +‎ -en (infinitival suffix).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɛrˈvæi̯lən/, /ˈmɛrvɛlən/

Verb

merveilen

1. To be astonished or surprised; to witness the unexpected.
2. To experience a marvel; to witness awe or wonder.
3. To marvel at or to gaze upon wondrously; to view with astonishment.
4. To induce, create, or result in astoundedness, awe, or astonishment
5. To be confused or wondering; to witness an event that is hard to decipher.
6. (rare) To view positively or kindly; to like.
7. (rare, Late Middle English) To ponder actions or doings.
   • [1564 February, Erasmus, “The Saiynges of Socrates”, in Nicolas Udall [i.e., Nicholas Udall], transl., Apophthegmes, that is to Saie, Prompte, Quicke, Wittie and Sentẽcious Saiynges, […] (in English), London: […] Ihon Kingston, →OCLC, book I, folio 4, recto, paragraph 11:

     I meruailled, why himſelf [Niccolò Leoniceno] did not practiſe Phiſike of whiche facultee he was a Doctour, and a publique reader: I auaile moche more, ſaieth he, in that I teach all thother Phiſiciãs [physicians].]

8. (rare, Late Middle English) To freeze; to make still.

Conjugation

Conjugation of merveilen (weak in -ed)

infinitive	(to) merveilen, merveile
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	merveile	merveiled
2nd-person singular	merveilest	merveiledest
3rd-person singular	merveileth	merveiled
subjunctive singular	merveile
imperative singular		—
plural1	merveilen, merveile	merveileden, merveilede
imperative plural	merveileth, merveile	—
participles	merveilynge, merveilende	merveiled, ymerveiled

¹Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Descendants

• English: marvel

References

• “merveillen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.