Hweorfa

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Old English verb meaning to turn round, revolve or move about from place to place without a fixed course
2. An archaic term for turning about or roaming around, describing motion that circles back or wanders aimlessly
3. Used in Old English to describe something that turns, revolves or goes wandering through an area

Etymology: Hweorfa is an Old English word, and its verb relative, "hweorfan," meant to turn, go round, or wander. The "-a" ending is typical of Old English nouns for people or things that do the action, so hweorfa most likely meant something like "wanderer" or "one who turns about." Its exact attestation is uncertain, so treat that sense as an informed reading rather than a recorded definition. The same root survives in English in a few places. "Whorl," a spiral or ring-shaped curl, comes from the Old English noun "hwerfel," which shares the root of hweorfan. The Old English "hwerf" meant a turn or dwelling, and it is the source of "wharf," though that word's shift to a landing place for ships came later. Old High German "hwerban," meaning to turn or move about, gave modern German "werben," which now means to recruit or advertise.