Meanings
present singular third person forstas · participle present forstaing · participle past forstaed · past forstaed · alternative Scotland forstaa · alternative Scotland forstaw
- ScotlandintransitivetransitiveTo comprehend; understand.
A cripple I'm not, ye forsta me, Tho' lame of a hand that I be; [...]
1714, Joseph Ritson, Scotish song
Origin
- Old Saxonfarstandan“to understand”
- Middle Low Germanvorstân“to understand”
- Norwegianforstå“to understand”
- Dutchverstaan“to understand”
- Englishforsta
Probably from Dutch verstaan (“to understand”); or from Norwegian forstå (“to understand”), itself from Middle Low German vorstân (“to understand”), from Old Saxon farstandan (“to understand”), equivalent to for- + stand. More at forstand.
More words from Dutch, Norwegian, Middle Low German
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
forsta. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forsta
“forsta.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forsta. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “forsta,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forsta.
Source: forsta on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.