guerdon
UK /ˈɡəː.dən/ · US /ˈɡɝ.dən/ noun, verb
Forms guerdons guerdoning guerdoned gerdon
- noun (now literary) A reward, prize or recompense for a service; an accolade.
- verb (transitive) To give such a reward to.
Etymology
From Middle English guerdon, guerdoun, gardone, from Old French guerdon, guerredon, guarredon, werdon, from Medieval Latin widerdōnum, alteration of widerlōnum, from West Germanic (whence Old High German widarlōn, Old English wiþerlēan), literally ‘back-payment’, with the second element assimilated to Latin dōnum (“gift”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A reward; requital; recompense; --used in both a good and a bad sense. Macaulay.
- verb To give guerdon to; to reward; to be a recompense for. [R.]
Etymology [OF. guerdon, guerredon, LL. widerdonum (influenced by L. donum gift, cf. Donation ), fr. OHG. widarl; widar again, against (G. wider wieder) + lon reward, G. lohn, akin to AS. leán Goth. laun. See Withers.]
Etymology [OF. guerdonner, guerredonner. See Guerdon, n.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “guerdon”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details