welkin

[wel-kin]

noun

Chiefly Literary.

1. the sky; the vault of heaven.

welkin

/ ˈwɛlkɪn /

noun

1. archaic,  the sky, heavens, or upper air

Word History and Origins

Origin of welkin¹

before 900; Middle English welken ( e ), Old English welcn, variant of wolcen cloud, sky; cognate with German Wolke cloud

Word History and Origins

Origin of welkin¹

Old English wolcen, welcen; related to Old Frisian wolken, Old Saxon, Old High German wolcan

Example Sentences

And anywhere would be a welkin, let Brittany Griner tell it.

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Charles Wesley wrote a hymn that began “Hark how all the welkin rings/Glory to the king of kings”.

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Until that moment I never quite knew the meaning of the phrase “to make the welkin ring.”

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The green earth's end Where the bowed welkin slow doth bend.

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I felt my little car vibrating to their force, as cheers, peal upon peal, came rolling up into the welkin.

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