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wain

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wain¹

  • /weɪn/ US, UK

Sounds like Wain, Waine, Wayne, wane (pane–pain merger) · Rhymes with -eɪn

Where it comes from

From Middle English wayn, from Old English wæġn, from Proto-West Germanic *wagn, from Proto-Germanic *wagnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *woǵʰnos, from *weǵʰ- (“to bring, transport”). Doublet of wagon, borrowed from Middle Dutch.

Cognates

Cognate with West Frisian wein, Dutch wagen, German Wagen, Danish vogn, Norwegian vogn, Swedish vagn.

noun wains · wayn

  1. archaic, literary A wagon; a four-wheeled cart for hauling loads, usually pulled by horses or oxen. "The Hay Wain" is a famous painting by John Constable.
  2. archaic A chariot or similar stately carriage. And the hill-king spake to his footpages twain. Time with me goes slow. — "Put ye the gray pacers now unto the wain," But that grief is heavy I know.

verb wains · waining · wained

  1. rare, transitive To carry.

wain²

verb wains · waining · wained

  1. misspelling Misspelling of wane As the auto industry is waining away, the city is looking for something new. http://www.modeldmedia.com/inthenews/urbanfarm15108.aspx

wain³

  • /ˈwiː(ə)n/
  • /ˈweɪ(ə)n/
  • [weːn]

Where it comes from

From wee one.

noun wains

  1. alternative Alternative form of wean

Wain⁴

  • /weɪn/ US, UK

Sounds like wain, Waine, wayne, Wayne, wane (pane–pain merger) · Rhymes with -eɪn

proper noun Wains

  1. countable, uncountable A surname.
  2. countable, uncountable A village in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.

proper noun the Wain

  1. abbreviation, ellipsis Ellipsis of Charles' Wain Bee! thou little mundane bird! Fly away to where I bid thee; O'er the moon, beneath the sun, Behind the lofty heaven's stars, Close by the Wain's axle - fly To the great Creator's court.

Translations

Every language

noun a wagon; a four-wheeled cart for hauling loads, usually pulled by horses or oxen

Italianocarro, carretto
Русскийпово́зка povózka, теле́га teléga

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Cite this
MLA

"wain." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/wain. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

wain. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/wain

Chicago

"wain." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/wain.

BibTeX
@misc{wain_2026,
  title = {wain},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/wain},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}