beorcan

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *berkan (“to bark”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbe͜or.kɑn/, [ˈbe͜orˠ.kɑn]

Verb

beorcan

1. to bark

   Sē hund biercþ forþ on menn.

   The dog keeps barking at people.

   • late 10th century, Exeter Book, Riddle 68

     Hwīlum iċ beorce swā hund.

     Sometimes I bark like a dog.

Conjugation

Conjugation of beorcan (strong class 3)

infinitive	beorcan	beorcenne
indicative mood	present tense	past tense
first person singular	beorce	bearc
second person singular	biercst	burce
third person singular	biercþ	bearc
plural	beorcaþ	burcon
subjunctive	present tense	past tense
singular	beorce	burce
plural	beorcen	burcen
imperative
singular	beorc
plural	beorcaþ
participle	present	past
	beorcende	(ġe)borcen

Related terms

• ġebeorc
• borcian

Descendants

• Middle English: barken, berken, borken
  • English: bark
  • Scots: berk, bark

References

• Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) “BEORCAN”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎^[1], 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.