ġiestran niht
The Old English for "last night" is ġiestran niht, "yester-night". The spelling ġystran niht is also found.
The phrase is used as an adverb of time: Ic slēp wel ġiestran niht, "I slept well last night".
Meaning: previous evening or night (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
ġiestran is the ancestor of "yester-", and niht means "night".
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
ġ sounds like the y in "yes", so the phrase sounds roughly like "YEE-es-tran nikht".
Did you know?
- The word "yesternight" lived on in English poetry and dialect long after everyday speech switched to "last night".
Examples in context
- Ic slēp wel ġiestran niht.I slept well last night.
