welthe

English

Noun

welthe

1. Obsolete spelling of wealth
   • 1474, Caxton, Game and Playe of the Chesse‎^[1]:

     And an enuyous man hath no vertue in hymself/ for he corrumpeth hymself for as moche as he hateth allway the welthe and vertues of other/ and thus ought they to kepe them that they take none euyll suspec[=o]n For a man naturally whan his affection hath suspecion in ony man that he weneth that he doth/ hit semeth to hym verily that it is doon.

   • c. 1500, anonymous author, A Chronicle of London from 1089 to 1483‎^[2]:

     Whan Charyte ys chosen with stats to stonde, Stedfast and styll, with oute distaunce, Then wreth may be exilid out of thys londe, And God oure gide to have governaunce; Wysdom and welthe with all plesaunce, May ryghtfulle reigne, and prosperite, For love hath underleyde wrethfull vengeaunce; Reioyse Enlond the lords acordid bee.

   • 1874, Alexander Barclay, The Ship of Fools, Volume 1‎^[3]:

     He wrote and ordeyned lawes moste egal and iust He edityed vnto the Grekes a comon welthe stable, quyet and commendable.

Middle English

Etymology 1

Either inherited from Old English *welþ, weleþu (from Proto-West Germanic *waliþu) or formed anew from wele (“wealth”) +‎ -the (abstract nominal suffix) on the model of helthe.

Alternative forms

• weelþe, wellthe, welt, welth, welþ, welþe, weolþe, wilthe
• welðe, welðhe (Early Middle English)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwɛːlθ(ə)/, /ˈwɛlθ(ə)/

Noun

welthe (uncountable)

1. Wealth, prosperity, plentifulness; a state of flourishing:
   1. Benefit or advantage; that which is helpful or advantageous.
   2. (religion) Spiritual flourishing or prosperity; salvation or reward.
2. Riches (great amount of valuable assets or material possessions)
3. An abundance or great number, especially if excessive or satisfying.

Related terms

• welthy

Descendants

• English: wealth
• Scots: walth

References

• “wē̆lth(e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 2

Adjective

welthe

1. Alternative form of welthy