spean

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See also: Spean

English

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Alternative forms

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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From Middle English *spene, *spane, from Old English spane, spanu (teat), from Proto-West Germanic *spanu, *spenu, from Proto-Germanic *spenô (nipple), from Proto-Indo-European *pstḗn (breast; teat). Cognate with West Frisian spien (nipple), Dutch speen (nipple), Danish spene (teat), Swedish spene (teat, nipple, dug), Icelandic speni (teat).

Alternatively a borrowing from Dutch speen (nipple, teat), from the same Proto-Germanic origin as above.

Noun

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spean (plural speans)

  1. (archaic or dialectal) A teat or nipple of a cow.
    • [1780?], Nicholas Coxe, The Huntſman. Containing the Best Methods of Sport, for Courſing with Greyhounds, and Hunting All Kinds of Chases in England, [] , London: J. Dixwell, page 50:
      The Genital part is all nervy; the Tail ſmall; and the Hind hath Udders betwixt her Thighs, with four Speans or Tets, like a Cow.

Etymology 2

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From Middle English spanen (to wean); see spane.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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spean (third-person singular simple present speans, present participle speaning, simple past and past participle speaned)

  1. Archaic form of spane.
    • 1899, Colville, Vernacular, page 15,
      Beginning life as a grice, the pig when speaned became a shot.

Anagrams

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