Agayn

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. Archaic spelling of the adverb meaning a second time or once more ; a phrase used to add a further point or to set a contrast
2. An older form of the word for occurring once more or anew ; used to introduce an extra consideration or a counterpoint
3. Once more in the sense of a repeated action ; furthermore, or conversely, when adding or contrasting a related idea

Etymology: "Agayn" is simply an older spelling of "again", the form the word took in Middle English. Its ancestor was Old English "onġēan", which meant "against" as well as "again", and that double meaning is still visible in the word's makeup. Its parts are "on-" and "gegn" or "gain", the latter meaning "against" or "toward", so the word was originally about facing something rather than repeating it. The same root survives in a surprising family of words. German "entgegen" means "contrary to", and Icelandic "í gegnum" means "through", which shows how far the underlying idea of confronting or passing across something has spread. Danish "igen" and Swedish "igen" both mean "again", meaning the Scandinavian languages kept the repetition sense that English took on more heavily.