Old English

American  

noun

1. Also called Anglo-Saxon.  the English language of a.d. c450–c1150. OE, O.E.

2. Printing. a style of black letter.

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Old English British  

noun

1.  OE.  Also called: Anglo-Saxon.  the English language from the time of the earliest settlements in the fifth century _ad to about 1100. The main dialects were West Saxon (the chief literary form), Kentish, and Anglian Compare Middle English Modern English

2. printing a Gothic typeface commonly used in England up until the 18th century

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Old English Cultural  

1. The English language from the fifth century until about 1150. In the fifth century, the Angles and Saxons of Germany settled in Britain and established their language in the southern part of the island — the region that was called “Angle-land,” or “England.” After 1150, the Norman French language introduced after the Norman Conquest influenced Old English, and Middle English developed.

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Discover More

Old English resembles the language spoken in Germany in the same period and is impossible for a present-day user of English to read without training. Beowulf is written in Old English.

Etymology

Origin of Old English

First recorded in 1845–50

Compare meaning

How does old-english compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Old English vs. Middle English

Example Sentences

The manuscript, now housed in the National Central Library of Rome, includes Caedmon's Hymn, a short Old English poem believed to have been composed more than 1,300 years ago.

From Science Daily • May 17, 2026

Tolkien, a scholar of Old English, studied the “theory of courage” found in poems such as the ancient epic “Beowulf,” redeeming what he called the “noble northern spirit” from the fascists who would pervert it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 22, 2026

For teachers, it can assist with curriculum writing or be a creative classroom aide, for instance creating introductions in Old English during a class on medieval times.

From Reuters • Nov. 16, 2023

Kingsland, a set dresser, walked with Jennine Beltran, a production designer who held the leashes of Luke, another Old English sheepdog mix, and Betty, a tiny poodle and schnauzer mix.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 22, 2023

You had to know Old English and the History of the English Language and a representative selection of all that had been written from Beowulf to the present day.

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath