eldertongue

Old English · prefix

bile-

Part of speech
prefix
IPA
/ˈbi.le/
Syllables
ˈbi · le (2 syllables)

Meaning

  1. kind, appropriate

    bile- + witt (“mind, understanding, sense, sanity”) → bilewit (“merciful, kind”)

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bil(i) (“gentle, kind, fitting”). Cognate with Old Saxon bili- (“uniform”), Old High German bili- (“suitable, proper, fit”), Ancient Greek φίλο- (phílo-, “friendly, kind, love of”). More at philosophy.

Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bile- · CC BY-SA 4.0 licence · Attribution