wassail
wassail · wassails · wassailed · wassailing
To toast, to drink to the health of anotherTo toast, to drink to the health of another.
UK/ˈwɒseɪl/US/ˈwɑseɪl/
Meaning
3 senses(transitive)To toast, to drink to the health of another.
The next morning he much regretted the gusto with which he had wassailed the night before.
propose a toast to
(intransitive)To drink wassail.
To go from house to house at Christmastime, singing carols.
Origin
From Middle English wassail, from Old Norse ves heill (“be healthy!”), from the imperativeFrom Middle English wassail, from Old Norse ves heill (“be healthy!”), from the imperative of vesa (“to be”) + heill (“healthy”). The earliest documented use of the term is from the first part of the 12th century CE, in Geoffroy of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae (see page's citations).
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Forms
wassails, wassailing, wassailed, wassailedSynonyms
12 synonymsgo from house to house, singing carols:carol
Close in meaning
- propose a toast to:toastdrinkpledgesalute
- celebrate noisily, often indulging in drinking; engage in uproarious festivities:revelracketmake whoopeemake merrymake happywhoop it upjollify
Word family
3 related wordsDerivedwassail bowl
Lessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle