What does sitten mean?
“Sitten” is the archaic past participle of the verb “sit.” It describes someone who has taken a seat or is in a seated position, and it can follow an auxiliary such as “have,” “had,” or “been”: “They had sitten quietly.” The form belongs to the conventions of Middle and Early Modern English, when the past participle was commonly formed by adding the ending -en to the verb. Although it may also appear in present-day literary or poetic writing, ordinary modern usage instead employs “sat” for a completed action, “have sat” or “have been seated” for a completed state, and “sitting” for an ongoing activity. Consequently, “sitten” is chiefly interesting as a historical survival and should not normally be used in straightforward contemporary speech or prose unless a deliberately archaic effect is intended.
verbAn archaic past participle of “sit,” meaning that someone has taken a seat or is in a seated position.
- An archaic past participle of “sit,” indicating that a person has sat down or is seated.
"By the time we arrived, the guests had sitten around the long table."
"They had sitten in silence for several minutes."
"The council satten in judgment upon the matter."
Once a normal past-tense form, “sitten” now sounds like a linguistic fossil preserved mainly in older writing.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of sitten
The form developed in Middle English as the past participle of “sit,” using the regular Middle English ending -en. The verb itself descends from Old English “sittan,” which in turn has cognates in other Germanic languages, including German “sitzen,” Dutch “zitten,” and Swedish “sitta.” Its long use in English was displaced by the modern participial forms “sat” and “seated.”
How sitten is actually used
This form is now archaic and chiefly appears in older literature, poetry, quotation, or deliberately elevated prose. Standard modern English normally uses “sat” or “been seated.”
Easily confused with sitten
“Sitten” is an archaic past participle, whereas “sitting” is the standard present participle and gerund of “sit.”