different between ashen vs weak

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?æ?.?n/
• Rhymes: -æ??n

Etymology 1

From Middle English asshen, aisshen, esscen, from Old English es?en (“made of ashwood”), equivalent to ash +? -en (“made or consisting of”). Cognate with Scots aschin, eschin (“ashen”).

Adjective

ashen (comparative more ashen, superlative most ashen)

1. Made from the wood of the ash-tree.

Translations

Etymology 2

From ash +? -en (“made or consisting of”).

Adjective

ashen (comparative more ashen, superlative most ashen)

1. Of or resembling ashes.

   A fine, ashen dust hung in the air.

2. Ash-colored; pale; anemic, anaemic.

   His ashen face belied his claims of good health.

Synonyms

• (sickly pale): See also Thesaurus:pallid

Translations

Etymology 3

From ash +? -en (verbal suffix).

Verb

ashen (third-person singular simple present ashens, present participle ashening, simple past and past participle ashened)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To turn into ash; make or become ashy
2. (transitive, intransitive) To make or become pale

Anagrams

• Ehsan, Haens, Hanes, Hanse, Sanhe, Shane, Shean, hanse, heans

Yola

Etymology

From Middle English asshe, from Old English æs?e, from Proto-West Germanic *ask?, from Proto-Germanic *ask?.

Noun

ashen

1. ashes

References

• Jacob Poole (1867) , William Barnes, editor, A glossary, with some pieces of verse, of the old dialect of the English colony in the baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, J. Russell Smith, ?ISBN

English

Etymology

From Middle English weyk, wayk, weik, waik, from Old Norse veikr (“weak”), from Proto-Germanic *waikwaz (“weak, yielded, pliant, bendsome”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyk- (“to bend, wind”). Cognate with Old English w?c (“weak, bendsome”), Saterland Frisian wook (“soft, gentle, tender”), West Frisian weak (“soft”), Dutch week (“soft, weak”), German weich (“weak, soft”), Norwegian veik (“weak”), Swedish vek (“weak, pliant”), Icelandic veikur (“bendsome, weak”). Related to Old English w?can (“to yield”). Doublet of week and wick. (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?)

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• enPR: w?k, IPA^(key): /wi?k/
• Rhymes: -i?k
• Homophone: week

Adjective

weak (comparative weaker, superlative weakest)

1. Lacking in force (usually strength) or ability.
   • weak with hunger, mad with love

2. Unable to sustain a great weight, pressure, or strain.

3. Unable to withstand temptation, urgency, persuasion, etc.; easily impressed, moved, or overcome; accessible; vulnerable.
   • 1703, Nicholas Rowe, The Fair Penitent Act I, scene I:

     Guard thy heart / On this weak side, where most our nature fails.

4. Dilute, lacking in taste or potency.

5. (grammar) Displaying a particular kind of inflection, including:
   1. (Germanic languages, of verbs) Regular in inflection, lacking vowel changes and having a past tense with -d- or -t-.
   2. (Germanic languages, of nouns) Showing less distinct grammatical endings.
   3. (Germanic languages, of adjectives) Definite in meaning, often used with a definite article or similar word.
6. (chemistry) That does not ionize completely into anions and cations in a solution.

7. (physics) One of the four fundamental forces associated with nuclear decay.
8. (slang) Bad or uncool.

9. (mathematics, logic) Having a narrow range of logical consequences; narrowly applicable. (Often contrasted with a strong statement which implies it.)
10. Resulting from, or indicating, lack of judgment, discernment, or firmness; unwise; hence, foolish.
11. Not having power to convince; not supported by force of reason or truth; unsustained.
12. Lacking in vigour or expression.

13. Not prevalent or effective, or not felt to be prevalent; not potent; feeble.
14. (stock exchange) Tending towards lower prices.

15. (photography) Lacking contrast.

Synonyms

• (lacking in force or ability): feeble, frail, powerless, vincible, assailable, vulnerable
• (lacking in taste or potency): dilute, watery
• See also Thesaurus:weak

Antonyms

• (lacking in force or ability): healthy, powerful, robust, strong, invincible
• (lacking in taste or potency): potent, robust, strong
• (chemistry: that does not ionize completely): strong

Derived terms

Translations

Anagrams

• Wake, wake, weka

West Frisian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /v???k/

Adjective

weak

1. (Clay) soft

Inflection

Alternative forms

• wêk (Wood)

Further reading

• “weak (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011