numeral a. Now arch. Forms: see below. [Apocopate form of OE. twéʓen, ME. tweyen, TWAIN, the final n being normally dropped. OE. twéʓe seems not to be recorded in WSax., but it occurs in Anglian in Rushw. Gospel Gl., and in the late Hatton Gosp. before a consonant, and is the ordinary form in Old Northumbrian (varying in Lindisfarne Gl. as twoeʓe, troʓe, tueʓ, tuoe, twoe, tue; Rit. Dunelm. has tvoeʓi, twoeʓo). These forms are not rigidly confined to the masc. From the OE. twéʓe (or by similar apocopation of ME. tweyen, tweien) came ME. treye, twei(e, twey in Midld. and South Eng., twai, tway in North. and North-Midld. But tway in Scotch from c. 1500 may also be only a variant spelling of the later twae from twā, TWO: the Sc. forms have therefore been separated as γ. Even as an archaism the form is now rarely employed.]

1

  A.  Illustration of Forms.

2

  α.  1 twóeʓe, tuéʓe (tuóʓe, tuéʓ, twé, tué), 1–2 twéʓe, twǽʓe, 3 tueye, tueie, tuei, 2–5 twei, 3–5 tweie, tweye, 3–7 twey, 4 tweiʓe, tweyʓe, tuuei; 3 twie, 4–5 twy.

3

a. 950.  Rituale Durelm. (Surtees), 113. Ðerh hynd seofontiʓ tvoeʓi boec aldes & nives ʓicyðnisses.

4

c. 950.  Lindisf. Gosp., Mark vi. 41. Fif hlafo & tue fiscas. Ibid., Luke ii. 24. Tuoe turturas vel tuoʓe birdas culfras [Rushw. twoeʓe t. vel twoeʓe birdas culfra].

5

c. 975.  Rushw. Gosp., John ii. 6. Nimende syndriʓe sestras twoeʓe vel ðria.

6

a. 1160.  Hatton Gosp., Matt. xxvi. 37. He ʓenam petrum & zebedeus tweʓe sunes [Ags. G. tweʓen suna].

7

c. 1175.  12th c. Hom. (Bodley), 93. Twaȝe men herbiforen þis festen festen.

8

c. 1200.  Trin. Coll. Hom., 207. Þe gostliche rode … haueð twei names, cordis contritio et proximi compassio.

9

c. 1275.  Passion of Our Lord, 438, in O. E. Misc., 49. Hi nome twey þeoues.

10

c. 1275.  Lay., 10670. Hii … sende twie [c. 1205 tweien] eorles.

11

c. 1290.  S. Eng. Leg., I. 10/317. Þe tweie croiz … þat þe þeoues on i-hanguede were.

12

1297.  R. Glouc. (Rolls), 731. And ȝer is tueie doȝtren half, & half him sulf nom. Ibid., 6322. Bi tuene þis tueye kinges.

13

a. 1325.  MS. Rawl. B. 520, lf. 65 b. Tuuei writes of wuche comez tuueine assoines.

14

c. 1325.  Spec. Gy Warw., 785. Tweye manere shame … Þat on goþ to dampnacioun; Þat oþer, 2to sauuacioun.

15

1387.  Trevisa, Higden (Rolls), VI. 5. Bytwene þe tweie [MS. γ twy] riveres.

16

c. 1400.  R. Gloucester’s Chron., 754 (MS. α). Þeos tweiȝe kinges.

17

c. 1449.  Pecock, Repr., I. ii. (Rolls), 8. A sillogisme is mad of twey proposiciouns dryuyng out of hem the thridde proposicioun.

18

  β.  north. and midl. Eng. 3–4 tuai, 4 tuay, 4–7 (8– arch.) tway (6 twaye).

19

a. 1300.  Cursor M., 12699 (Cott.). Of hir war born god childer tuai [rhyme sai; F. tway; Tr. twey, rhyme sey].

20

c. 1330.  Arth. & Merl. (Kölbing), 4788. He hadde strengþe of kniȝtes tvay.

21

13[?].  Cursor M., 21756 (Gött.). Þe bodi [is] of element[s] tuis tuay [Cott. tuai; F. twies tway, rhyme I say].

22

1559.  Mirr. Mag., Ld. Hastings, li. Vniudgd hangth yet the case betwixt them twaye [rhyme saye].

23

1579.  Spenser, Sheph. Cal., May, 18. We tway bene men of elder witt.

24

1611.  Coryat’s Crudities, Panegyr. Verses, d viij b. Tom is … the Greeker of the tway [rhyme say].

25

1742.  Shenstone, Schoolmistress, 51. For sceptre she does wield Tway birchen sprays.

26

1865.  Tway [see B. 1 b].

27

  γ.  Sc. 4–7 tway, 6–7 tuay.

28

c. 1375.  Sc. Leg. Saints, xxii. (Laurentius), 512. Þai tuk þe cors … Þai tway it bare.

29

c. 1470.  Henry, Wallace, IX. 801. Mycht we get ane or tway [rhyme way].

30

1513.  Douglas, Æneis, I. vi. 17. Amyd the wod his modir met thame tway [rhyme array].

31

1537.  Registr. Aberdon. (Maitl. Cl.), I. 473. Tway pennies for ilk barne absent. Ibid. (1549), 438. For þe tuay part of þe mylne.

32

1570.  Satir. Poems Reform., xvii. 105. That schot, allace! yis realme hes shot in tway [rhyme away].

33

a. 1584.  Montgomerie, Cherrie & Slae, 460. Ane foule in hand, or tway [rhyme day]. Ibid. (a. 1600), Misc. Poems (S.T.S., 1887), i. 12. A turne in tyme is ay worth other tuay [rhyme auay.]

34

1615.  Sir W. Mure, Misc. Poems, viii. 44. Reflecting only on ws tuay [rhyme away].

35

  B.  Signification. = TWO.

36

  1.  In concord with a sb. a. Preceding the sb.

37

a. 950.  Tvoeʓi boec; c. 950 Tuoʓe birdas; c. 1160 Tweʓe sunes; c. 1200 Twei names [see A. α above].

38

c. 1275.  Passion of Our Lord, 645, in O. E. Misc., 55. Þer stoden twei veyre men.

39

1297.  R. Glouc. (Rolls), 312. Twee dawes hii wende in þe see. Ibid., 1806. Tueie [v.r. twei] emperours of rome, Dioclician & … maximian.

40

1303.  R. Brunne, Handl. Synne, 11264. To pray … saueþ man on twey partys.

41

1362.  Langl., P. Pl., A. V. 109. He was bitel-brouwed, with twei blered eiȝen.

42

c. 1380.  Wyclif, Sel. Wks., III. 188. Oure Lord … spekiþ … of tweie matrimoneys.

43

c. 1394.  P. Pl. Crede, 439. A litell childe … And tweyne of tweie ȝeres olde.

44

a. 1425.  Cursor M., 19419 (Trin.). Tweye witenes had þei hem purueide.

45

c. 1450.  Godstow Reg., 191. An hundred shillyngis … at twey termes in the yere.

46

c. 1570.  Marr. Wit & Science, IV. iv. D iv b. Ignoraunce. Choulde geue twaye pence to see it and tway pence moore.

47

1573.  Tyrie, Refut., in Cath. Tractates (S.T.S.), 17. The kirk is vniuersall, and … it hes continewall successioun of pastoures: quhilk tuay markis did neuer … aggrie to onie … congregatioun of heretikes.

48

a. 1586.  Sidney, Arcadia, Geron & Mastix, 20. ’Tis now full tway score Of yeares … since I good Mastix knew.

49

1712.  Prior, Erle Robert’s Mice, 1. Tway Mice … Batten beside Erle Robert’s Table.

50

  b.  Following the sb. poet.

51

c. 1205.  Lay., 26235. Þa cleopede he eorles tweie.

52

c. 1275.  Moral Ode, 225, in O. E. Misc., 66. Hunger and þurst, vuele tweye [earlier MSS. twa, two] ivere.

53

13[?].  K. Alis., 1254 (Laud MS.). He knew þoo barouns tweye [rhyme cuntreye].

54

c. 1320.  R. Brunne, Medit., 50. Þe soper was dyȝt … By dyscyplys seuenty and twey.

55

c. 1400.  Rom. Rose, 1744. Thanne toke I with myn hondis tweie The arowe.

56

c. 1440.  Pallad. on Husb., VIII. 161. Vppon feet but tway.

57

1543.  Grafton, Harding’s Chron., Ded. xii. The Scottish kyng, sending foorth heraldes tway.

58

1559.  Mirr. Mag., Dk. Buckhm., xxviii. Downthrow we strayt his sellie nephewes twaye.

59

1865.  S. Evans, Bro. Fabian, 58. Now … shut mine eyen tway.

60

  † c.  Tway part (Sc.), two-thirds (= twa part: see TWO B. I. 1 c). Obs.

61

1531.  Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. (1905), VI. 18. For tway elnis and ane tway-part elne gray weluet.

62

1549.  Registr. Aberdon. (Maitl. Cl.), I. 438. With brew hous and tuay part of þe myln of þe said toune.

63

  2.  Absolutely with ellipsis of sb., or following a pronoun or pronominal adj.

64

1297.  R. Glouc. (Rolls), 4071. Sibile þe sage sede … Þat þer ssolde of brutayne þre men be ybore Þat ssolde winne þe aumperye of rome; of þe tueye ydo it is,… & þou art þe þridde.

65

13[?].  Cursor M., 635 (Gött.). Naked war þai bath tway [Tr. þei boþe tweyn].

66

c. 1350.  Will. Palerne, 2147. To take hem tweie.

67

a. 1450.  Knt. de la Tour (1906), 153. Y shalle saie of euery astate an ensaumple or twey.

68

a. 1553.  Udall, Royster D., IV. i. (Arb.), 59. I haue a message or tway.

69

a. 1586.  Sidney, Arcadia, III. Geron & Histor, 91. Betwixt vs tway We beare our double yoke.

70

1642.  H. More, Song of Soul, I. I. xxxiii. When Hattubus old … did tie them tway With nuptiall charm.

71

  b.  In genitive after possess. pron.

72

1476.  J. Paston, in P. Lett., III. 155. Ther tweys dysposysyon [= the disposition of them two].

73

  c.  as sb. A pair, couple.

74

a. 1800[?].  Lord Livingston, ix., in Child, Ballads (1892), VIII. 432. They were a comely tway.

75

  3.  In (into) tway: into two parts or pieces, in two.

76

c. 1375.  Cursor M., 20556 (Fairf.). For ferde hir hert sulde brast in-twai.

77

1558.  Lydgate’s Bochas, IX. xxxv. 36 b. The lyues threde for to breke in tway [Bodl. MS. tweyne].

78

1567.  Gude & Godlie B. (S.T.S.), 195. Cut ȝour typpet in to tway.

79

1590.  Spenser, F. Q., I. vii. 27. Which … almost rent her tender hart in tway.

80

  4.  Comb., as tway-coned, -edged, -footed, -handed adjs.; † tway-biting a., ‘biting’ or cutting two ways, two-edged; † tway-fold adv. = TWIFOLD, TWOFOLD; † tway-like a.: see quot. and cf. TWILEKE; † tway-toothed a., having two rows of teeth. See also TWAYBLADE.

81

1382.  Wyclif, Prov. v. 4. The tunge of hir sharp as a *twei bitende swerd.

82

1872.  Blackie, Lays Highl., 105. Fare-thee-well, thou *tway-coned Cruachan.

83

1545.  Joye, Exp. Dan. i. B iij b. With the *twei edged swearde.

84

1303.  R. Brunne, Handl. Synne, 1153. Þys olde man … bade hym take A sak … And … turne hyt *tweyfolde.

85

c. 1386.  Chaucer, Can. Yeom. Prol. & T., 13 (Ellesm.). A male tweyfoold [v.r. twyfold] vp on his croper lay.

86

1398.  Trevisa, Barth. De P. R., V. liv. (Bodl. MS.), lf. 28/1. Þe feete of foules and of *twey footed beestes.

87

1552.  Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scotl., X. 82. *Tway handit sword.

88

1551.  Recorde, Pathw. Knowl., I. Defin. B iij. An other distinction of the names of triangles, according to their sides, whiche other be all equal … other els two sydes bee equall and the thyrd vnequall, which the Greekes call Isosceles,… and in english *tweyleke may they be called.

89

1387.  Trevisa, Higden (Rolls), VI. 405. Wormes þat were *tweie [v.r. twy] toþed [L. bidentati] and i-liche to wontes … ete þe brede corne.

90