Resoun

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. An archaic spelling of the ground or cause that justifies an action ; the mental power to think logically and draw sound conclusions
2. Older form meaning the motive or explanation behind something ; the human faculty for rational, logical judgment and understanding
3. A former spelling for the justification given for a belief or act ; the intellectual ability to think clearly and sensibly

Etymology: Before it meant the human power to think, the Latin "ratio" meant something plainer: a calculation or account, the sort of sum a merchant would work out. It grew from "reri," "to reckon" or "to think," so the idea of counting came first and the idea of rational judgment developed from it. The Middle English spelling "resoun" came through Old French "raison," which carried the same Latin sense into English. Chaucer and his contemporaries used the word for a cause or justification, for an argument, and for the mind's capacity to judge, so one term covered the act of explaining and the faculty that makes explanations possible.