Showing results for "kenning"

• present participle of ken.

kenning

American  

[ken-ing] / ˈkɛn ɪŋ /

noun

1. a conventional poetic phrase used for or in addition to the usual name of a person or thing, especially in Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon verse, as “a wave traveler” for “a boat.”

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kenning British  

/ ˈkɛnɪŋ /

noun

1. a conventional metaphoric name for something, esp in Old Norse and Old English poetry, such as Old English bānhūs (bone house) for "body"

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Etymology

Origin of kenning

First recorded in 1880–85; from Old Norse: literally “teaching, doctrine, poetic periphrasis”; see origin at ken, -ing ¹

Explanation

A kenning, in literature, is a word or phrase that is a metaphor for something simpler. Calling a ship a "sea-steed," for example, is a kenning. You're most likely to hear the term kenning in a literature class, especially if you happen to be studying Old Norse or Old English poetry. It's part of both literary traditions to use figurative language — often in the form of a compound word or a phrase — to represent a simple word. In Old Norse, a typical kenning is "sun of the houses" for "fire." The root is the Old Norse kenna, "know, recognize, or perceive."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

kenning

Bell: And so say I: Though, kenning only Peter, I’m inclined To fancy Jim may be the better man.

From Krindlesyke by Wilfrid Wilson Gibson

Ay, ay—thou is a cunning lad for kenning the hours of bargaining.

From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 10, No. 280, October 27, 1827 by Various

He that is ill of his harbery, is good of his way kenning.

From Collection of Scotch Proverbs by Pappity Stampoy

I thocht on this, for his voice was mournfu', though I couldna understand the words; and, kenning he was a stranger in a far land, my bowels yearned within me with compassion towards him.

From Amusing Prose Chap Books by Various

He was the first to recognize the significance of kenning, metaphor, and compound.

From The Translations of Beowulf A Critical Bibliography by Chauncey Brewster Tinker