What does wost mean?
Wost is the archaic second-person singular present indicative of the verb wit, meaning “knowest” or, with the subject thou, “you know.” It belongs to the older English agreement system in which familiar address took thou while other levels of formality used ye or you. In Early Modern English and earlier, forms of wost appeared routinely in prose, drama, devotional writing, and conversation; today the word survives chiefly in quotations, literary or religious contexts, and discussions of historical grammar. Because wost carries its own subject agreement, it normally appears with thou rather than with you. The phrase “thou wost” is therefore a useful reminder that grammatical endings can preserve a long-disused social distinction. Wost is also easily confused with wast, the archaic second-person singular past of be, but the two differ in meaning, tense, and historical development.
verbAn archaic second-person singular present indicative form of wit, meaning “knowest” or “you know” when used with thou.
- The archaic second-person singular present indicative of wit, meaning “knowest” (“you know”).
"Thou wost that I have not forgotten the promise."
"Thou wost that I have not forgotten the promise."
"In the old play, the queen asks, “Thou wost the road to Dover?”"
Wost is “you know” with a time capsule attached: its form preserves the old distinction between thou and you.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of wost
Wost descends from Old English wāst, the second-person singular present indicative of witan, meaning “to know.” It continued through Middle English as wost and was used with thou in the older second-person singular paradigm. Its vocabulary belongs to the Indo-European root represented in English by wit, wise, and witness; wot is a closely related contracted form of the same verb.
Related word forms
How wost is actually used
Wost is archaic or literary and normally appears with the subject thou. It belonged to the traditional second-person singular agreement system of English, much of which disappeared from ordinary speech during the Early Modern period.
Easily confused with wost
Wost means “knowest,” whereas wast is the archaic second-person singular past of be, equivalent to “were.”