twain

Meanings

1. two

1. twofold

1. Pair, couple.

1. To part in twain; divide; sunder.

1. A standard software protocol and applications programming interface (API) that regulates communication between software applications and imaging devices such as scanners and digital cameras.

1. A surname.
2. A census-designated place in Plumas County, California, United States.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁der. Proto-Germanic *twai Proto-West Germanic *twai-der. Old English twēġen Middle English tweyne English twain PIE word *dwóh₁ From Middle English tweyne, tweien, twaine, from Old English twēġen m (“two”), from Proto-West Germanic *twai-, from Proto-Germanic *twai, from Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁. Cognate with Saterland Frisian twäin, Low German twene, German zween. More at two. The word outlasted the breakdown of gender in Middle English and survived as a secondary form of two, then especially in the cases where the numeral follows a noun. Its continuation into modern times was aided by its use in KJV, the Marriage Service, in poetry (where it is commonly used as a rhyme word), and in oral use where it is necessary to be clear that two and not to or too is meant.