English Explanatory Dictionary

hean

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Mean; abject; poor; humble; lowly.
verb
  1. To treat with contumely; insult; humiliate; debase; lower.

Pronunciation

/hiːn/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-hean.wav

Word forms

hean more hean most hean hene heans heaning heaned

Etymology

From Middle English hene, from Old English hēan (“lowly, despised, poor, mean, bare, abject”), from Proto-Germanic *hauniz (“low, lowly”), from Proto-Indo-European *kaw- (“to degrade, humiliate”). Cognate with German höhn (“jeering, demeaning, bad”), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌽𐍃 (hauns, “contemptible, base, humble”), Dutch hoon (“scorn, insult”), Latvian kauns (“shame, disgrace, dishonour”), Ancient Greek καυνός (kaunós, “bad”).

Derived words

heanling
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