Twaesome

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A small group consisting of exactly two people, often a couple or a pair who go somewhere or do something together
2. Two people considered as a unit, especially a pair who act or appear together in a Scots or northern English manner
3. The pairing of two individuals, typically a couple or companions, who share an activity or stay closely associated

Etymology: Scots speakers long used "twa" for "two," a form descended from Old English "twā," the feminine and neuter form of "two." Add the suffix "-some" and you get a word for a pair of people, usually a couple or companions out together. "Twaesome" looks like a spelling variant of the more common "twasome," which shares the same Scots root. The suffix does more than it first appears to. In "handsome" and "wholesome," "-some" means "having the quality of," from Old English "-sum." In "twosome," "threesome," and "foursome," it means "a group of" a given number, so these words are closer to "a set of two" than to a description of qualities. The same suffix appears in "tiresome" and "awesome," which take the first sense, while the number compounds take the second.