woebegone

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English wo-bigon, wo-begon (“(adjective) deeply affected by woe, distressed, sorrowful, wretched; affected by physical impairment or pain; tired, weary; abominable, cursed; (noun) unfortunate person, wretch”), from wo (“distress, misery, woe; physical pain or suffering; etc.”) + bigon (the past participle form of bigon (“of a state: to come upon or overtake (someone), beset, overwhelm, bego; of a person: to be overwhelmed by grief, etc.”)): Wo is derived from Old English wā (“woe”), from Proto-West Germanic *wai (“woe!”, interjection), from Proto-Germanic *wai (“woe!”, interjection), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wáy (“ah!, oh!; alas!, woe!”, interjection). Bigon is derived from Old English begān (“to go over, traverse; to beset, surround; to occupy; to overrun; etc.”), from Proto-West Germanic *bigān, from *bi- (from Proto-Germanic *bi- (prefix meaning ‘at; by’), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁épi (“at; near; on”)) + *gān (“to go”) (from Proto-Germanic *gāną (“to go; to walk”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₁- (“to go; to reach; to abandon, leave”)). By surface analysis, woe +‎ begone (the past participle form of bego (“(obsolete) to affect”)). Noun sense 1 (“person who is deeply affected or overwhelmed by suffering or trouble, and so filled with woe”) became obsolete after the 14th or 15th century, and was only revived in the 19th century. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈwəʊbɪɡɒn/ (General American) enPR: wōʹbĭ-gôn, IPA(key): /ˈwoʊbiˌɡɔn/, /-bə-/, (cot–caught merger) enPR: -gän, IPA(key): /-ɡɑn/ Hyphenation: woe‧be‧gone === Adjective === woebegone (comparative more woebegone, superlative most woebegone) Of a person: deeply affected or overwhelmed by suffering or trouble, and so filled with woe (“great distress or sadness”); (loosely) forlorn, sad, unhappy. Synonyms: lamentable; see also Thesaurus:sad (by extension) Of a person or thing: having a distressed, miserable, or sad appearance. (of a thing): Synonyms: derelict, dilapidated, godforsaken, ramshackle, rundown, tumbledown Of a thing: in a deplorable state. ==== Derived terms ==== Lake Wobegon woebegonely woebegoneness woebegonish (obsolete) ==== Translations ==== === Noun === woebegone (plural woebegones) A person who is deeply affected or overwhelmed by suffering or trouble, and so filled with woe. Near-synonym: (chiefly US, informal) sad sack ==== Translations ==== === References ===