wellaway
[wel-uh-wey]
- (used to express sorrow.)
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Also well·a·day [wel-uh-dey] /ˈwɛl əˈdeɪ/.
Origin of wellaway
before 900; Middle English we(i)lawei, Old English weilāwei (wei < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse vei woe), replacing Old English wā lā wā woe! lo! woe!
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
wellaway
- archaic woe! alas!
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Word Origin for wellaway
Old English, from wei lā wei, variant of wā lā wā, literally: woe! lo woe
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for wellaway
mid-13c., alteration (by influence of Scandinavian forms) of Old English wa la wa, literally "woe, lo, woe!" from wa "woe" (see woe).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper