Etymology

bethink

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Today it means: To think about, to recollect. Full definition →

Middle English bethenken ← Old English beþenċan ← Proto-Germanic *biþankijaną
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The story

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*biþankijaną
  2. Old English · inherited frombeþenċan
  3. Middle English · inherited frombethenken
  4. English todaybethink

From Middle English bethenken, bithenchen (“to think about, consider”) from Old English beþenċan, biþenċan (“to think upon, remind, consider, remember”), from Proto-Germanic *biþankijaną; equivalent to be- + think. Akin to Old High German pidenchan (German bedenken), Gothic 𐌱𐌹𐌸𐌰𐌲𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (biþagkjan), Dutch bedenken.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.