atheling

A1T1H4E1L1I1N1G2
/ˈæðəlɪŋ/

noun

A prince; especially, an Anglo-Saxon prince or royal heir.

Opposite
hlæfdige
Scrabble 12

Meanings

nounatheling (plural athelings)

plural athelings · alternative adeling · alternative aetheling · alternative ætheling · alternative etheling

  1. otherwise obsoleteA prince; especially, an Anglo-Saxon prince or royal heir.
    1 more example

    […]to substitute as the Confessor′s heir, the Atheling Edward (son of Edmund Ironside), who was then an exile in Hungary. After the atheling′s return from exile, and his very suspicious death in England in 1057, the Norman duke must surely have realized that his chief opponent in England was likely to be Harold Godwineson[…].

    1966, Dorothy Whitelock, The Norman Conquest, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, page 60

Synonyms & antonyms

antonym(s) of “prince”

Opposite
hlæfdige

Origin

  1. Proto-Germanic*aþulingaz
  2. Proto-West Germanic*aþuling
  3. Old Englishæþeling
  4. Middle Englishatheling
  5. Englishatheling

From Middle English atheling, from Old English æþeling, from Proto-West Germanic *aþuling, from Proto-Germanic *aþulingaz. Doublet of edling. By surface analysis, athel + -ing.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

atheling. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/atheling

MLA

“atheling.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/atheling. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “atheling,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/atheling.

Source: atheling on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.