Wreath

How to spell wreath

6 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce wreath

What does wreath mean?

1. nounA ring of flowers, leaves, or greenery, often hung or laid as decoration or in remembrance.
2. nounA curling or twisting ring of something such as smoke or mist.

Wreath in a sentence

• She hung a holly wreath on the front door for the holidays.

• A thin wreath of smoke rose from the chimney into the cold air.

• The family laid a wreath of white roses at the memorial.

• A faint wreath of mist hung over the river at dawn.

Where does wreath come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This word comes from Old English writha, meaning a band, ring, or coil, which was built directly on the verb writhan, 'to twist or wind round'. That same twisting verb survives today as 'writhe', and the family also gave us 'wrist', the joint that turns and twists. The initial 'wr-' once represented an audible sound at the front of the word, but English long ago stopped pronouncing the 'w', leaving a silent letter that is exactly the spelling trap here. By the medieval period the noun had settled on the sense of a twisted or plaited ring of foliage or flowers, the meaning that dominates today. The spelling kept the old Germanic 'wr-' cluster even after the pronunciation simplified, so the eye must remember a letter the ear never hears.

How the word is built

• wr- (from writhan: to twist)
• -eath (noun, the twisted thing)