What does wox mean?
Wox is an archaic Scots form of the past tense of be. It was used particularly with second-person singular and plural subjects, so “thou wox” corresponds to modern English “you were,” while “the wox” corresponds to “they were.” The word survives in older literature, historical texts, and discussions of Scottish dialect, but it is not part of standard contemporary English. Its principal interest lies in the agreement system preserved by the form: older Scots distinguished different past-tense endings according to the person and number of the subject. For that reason, wox can appear where modern English uses either was or were, depending on its subject. Outside such historical or dialectal contexts, writers should normally use the standard forms was and were. Wox remains a useful example of how grammatical endings and subject agreement can survive in a small vocabulary item long after the rest of the paradigm has changed.
verbAn archaic Scots form of the past tense of be, used especially with second-person singular and plural subjects; it corresponds to was or were in modern English.
- Archaic Scots: the past tense of be with a second-person singular or plural subject, corresponding to modern was or were.
"Thou wox ever a faithful friend to those in distress."
"Thou wox my closest friend."
"The wox waiting at the gate when the storm came on."
Wox is a tiny time machine: its use preserves an older Scots agreement system that standard English has largely smoothed away.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of wox
Wox belongs to the Middle English and Scots past-tense paradigm of the verb be and is historically related to Old English wæs, the ancestor of modern English was. Older Scots used distinct past-tense forms according to grammatical person and number, with wox serving particularly for second-person singular and plural subjects. Its standard English relatives include was and were, while been and be belong to the same wider verb system. Wox is now preserved mainly in archaic, literary, and dialectal usage.
How wox is actually used
Wox is chiefly literary, historical, or dialectal. In modern standard English, was is normally used with first- and third-person singular subjects, while were is used with second-person singular and plural subjects.
Easily confused with wox
Wox is an archaic Scots grammatical form of was, whereas wax is a separate noun and verb referring to a pliable substance or to growth.