Old English tegn "military follower, one who holds lands in exchange for military service," also "vassal, retainer, attendant," from Proto-Germanic *thegnas (cognates: Old Saxon thegan "follower, warrior, boy," Old Norse tegn "thane, freeman," Old High German thegan, German Degen "thane, warrior, hero"), from PIE *tek-no- (cognates: Sanskrit takman "descendant, child," Greek teknon "child"), from root *tek- "to beget, give birth to" (cognates: Greek tekos "child, the young of animals," tokos "childbirth, offspring, produce of money, interest"). Also used in Old English for "disciple of Christ." Specific sense of "man who ranks between an earl and a freeman" is late 15c.
The modern spelling is from Scottish, where early 13c. it came to mean "chief of a clan, king's baron," and it has predominated in English probably due to the influence of "Macbeth;" normal orthographic changes from Old English eegn would have produced Modern English *thain. Some historians now use thegn to distinguish Anglo-Saxon thanes from Scottish thanes.
雙語例句
1. There lived a great thane, or lord, called Macbeth.
有一個顯赫的爵士, 或稱貴族, 名叫麥克白.
來自辭典例句
2. They were empowered by the King to confer upon Macbeth the dignity of thane of Cawdor.
他們奉國王的命令封麥克白作考特爵士.
來自辭典例句
3. Macbeth had entertained a jealousy of Macduff, the thane of Fife.
麥克白對麥克德夫 —— 伐夫地區的大鄉紳一直心存妒意.
來自互聯網
4. Gordon: It is worse thane - mail spam.
莫莉: 是啊,垃圾郵件是夠煩人的.
來自互聯網
5. We have thane up some more flexible practice In foreign trade. this will benefit us both.