Undern

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic word for the middle part of the morning, roughly between dawn-related work and noon ; a small meal eaten at that hour of the day
2. The late morning or early afternoon stretch of the day, once used in older English ; a light refreshment or snack taken during that time
3. Old English term for the forenoon, the period before midday ; a modest repast or lunch-like meal consumed at that point in the day

Etymology: The Old English "undern" originally named a time of day rather than a meal. It referred to the third hour of the day, roughly nine o'clock in the morning, and by extension the morning itself. The sense came from a Proto-Germanic word meaning "interval," which in turn grew from a root meaning "between," so the word was once a marker of a span of time caught between dawn and midday. Over the Middle English period the word shifted from a point on the clock toward the broader idea of the late morning and then the midday period, and eventually came to label a meal taken around that time. Its Middle English forms, "undern" and "ondern," show the same continuity of sense as the word passed into the language.