Etymology

in twain

Today it means: In two, in halves, into two parts, asunder Full definition →

Middle English in tweyn ← Old English on twēġen
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The story

  1. Old English · derived fromon twēġen“in two”
  2. Middle English · inherited fromin tweyn
  3. English todayin twain

From Middle English in tweyn, in twen, in tweyne (also as on tweyne). Compare Old English on twēġen (“in two”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.