Anglo-Saxon
Americannoun
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an English person of the period before the Norman Conquest.
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the original Germanic element in the English language.
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plain and simple English, especially language that is blunt, monosyllabic, and often rude or vulgar.
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a person whose native language is English.
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a person of English descent.
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(in the U.S.) a person of colonial descent or British origin.
adjective
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of, relating to, or characteristic of the Anglo-Saxons.
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of or relating to Anglo-Saxon.
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English-speaking; British or American.
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(of words, speech, or writing) blunt, monosyllabic, and often vulgar.
noun
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a member of any of the West Germanic tribes (Angles, Saxons, and Jutes) that settled in Britain from the 5th century ad and were dominant until the Norman conquest
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the language of these tribes See Old English
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any White person whose native language is English and whose cultural affiliations are those common to Britain and the US
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informal plain blunt English, esp English containing taboo words
adjective
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forming part of the Germanic element in Modern English
``forget'' is an Anglo-Saxon word
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of or relating to the Anglo-Saxons or the Old English language
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of or relating to the White Protestant culture of Britain, Australia, and the US
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informal (of English speech or writing) plain and blunt
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of or relating to Britain and the US, esp their common legal, political, and commercial cultures, as compared to continental Europe
Etymology
Origin of Anglo-Saxon
1605–15; based on New Latin, Medieval Latin Anglo-Saxōnēs, Anglī Saxōnēs (plural); from 10th cent., collective name for WGmc-speaking people of Britain (compare Old English Angulseaxan ); see Angle, Saxon
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Alfred the Great, king of the lone remaining Anglo-Saxon kingdom, held the line and clawed enough land back to eventually rule over about half of England.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 8, 2026
The English flee, the French strip the corpses in the lower border, and the ragged-edged Tapestry ends as suddenly and violently as Anglo-Saxon England.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
We know very little about Offa compared to other Anglo-Saxon monarchs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
Ultimately the blood the French thought they could sniff as during a second-half comeback turned out to be Anglo-Saxon bloody-mindedness.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
When I think upon their excellence of parts, their facility in the vaguaries of our Anglo-Saxon cant, I am ashamed at the pride with which my masters regarded my own slender accomplishments.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
