yea

yea · adverb, conjunction, interjection, noun¹

1. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*jā
2. Old English · inherited fromġēa
3. Middle English · inherited fromye
4. English todayyea

From Middle English ye, ȝea, ya, ȝa, from Old English ġēa, iā (“yea, yes”), from Proto-West Germanic *jā. The modern pronunciation shows an irregular development of Early Modern English /ɛː/ to /eɪ/ in the standard language, probably from association with the antonym nay.

yea · interjection²

From yeah.

yea · interjection³

See yay.

Words from the same roots