athirst

== English == === Etymology === Inherited from Middle English athirst, from Old English ofþyrst, past participle of ofþyrstan (“to smart from thirst”), equivalent to a- (“of”, Etymology 8) +‎ thirst (verb). === Pronunciation === (UK) IPA(key): /əˈθɜːst/ Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)st === Adjective === athirst (comparative more athirst, superlative most athirst) (archaic) Thirsty. (figuratively) Eager or extremely desirous (for something). 1913, Rabindranath Tagore, The Gardener, translated from the Bengali by the author, 5,[3] I am restless. I am athirst for far-away things. My soul goes out in a longing to touch the skirt of the dim distance. ==== Derived terms ==== === Anagrams === ratshit, rattish, tartish, tirthas == Middle English == === Alternative forms === athurst, a-thurst, aþirst, aþriste, aþurst, a þurst, a-þurst, a-þurste hofþurst, ofþerst, of þurch, ofþurst, of-þurst (Early Middle English) aferst, a-ferst, afurst, a-furst (with /f/) a-þrest, aþreste, a-þrust (Herefordshire); a-thriste, a thryst, a-thryste (especially East Anglia, East Saxon) === Etymology === Inherited from Old English ofþyrst, from ofþyrstan (“to be dehydrated”); reinforced by the phrase on thirst. By surface analysis, a- +‎ thirst. Southern and West Midland forms with /f/ are from assimilation of /θ/ to the preceding /f/ (in early forms which retain the /f/ of ofþyrst). They may have been reinforced by the parallel of afyngred, variant of ofhungred (where a similar assimilatory process occurred). === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /aˈθirst/, /aˈθurst/ IPA(key): /aˈθrist/ (especially East Anglia, East Saxon) IPA(key): /aˈfurst/ (West Midland, Southern) === Adjective === athirst (especially Southern, Southwest Midland; not Northern) Suffering from thirst; very thirsty. (with after) Yearning, eager. ==== Descendants ==== English: athirst (archaic) ==== References ==== “athurst, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007. “ofthirst, ppl.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007. “athirst, adj.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.