WULFCRÆFT Free glossary
Anglo-Saxon History & Literature

25 Old English Words — Explained, Pronounced, and Brought to Life

A free glossary of Anglo-Saxon vocabulary with meaning, beginner-friendly pronunciation, and the literary context that makes each word matter. From hwæt to wyrd.

Old English Words Explained — PDF cover

What's inside

Not a dictionary. An invitation.

Old English isn't modern English written strangely — it's a language of the hall and the monastery, the battlefield and the sea. Each entry in this glossary gives you three things:

Meaning that goes deeper than translation

Wyrd isn't the mystical "fate" modern culture imagines. Frēond meant protection, not just affection. Every entry explains what the word carried in its own world.

Pronunciation you can actually use

Friendly respellings for every word — how to handle æ, þ, and long vowels — so you can read Old English aloud with confidence, no linguistics degree required.

The literature, not just the lexicon

Every word is shown at work in Beowulf, The Wanderer, The Dream of the Rood, and the wider poetic tradition — including three short passages to read aloud.


Checked against the sources that matter

Every definition in this glossary was checked against the Dictionary of Old English (University of Toronto), Bosworth–Toller's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, and Klaeber's Beowulf — then written in plain language for beginners. Serious about accuracy, allergic to jargon.

"The Anglo-Saxon world deserves better than academic embalming or horned-helmet cliché."

Start reading Old English today

25 words. Six themes — from voice and thought to fate, faith, and exile. One free PDF.