blowen

English

Noun

blowen (plural blowens)

1. (obsolete, vulgar) A prostitute; a courtesan.
   • 1840, Regular Slangsman, The Flash Mirror, Or, Kiddy's Cabinet, page 12:

     Poll Strokem, an old blowen, well known about the streets of London, was continually crying; see her whenever you would, she was all snot and slobber, like a calf's head on a hot summer's day […]

   • August 1831, Bryan O'Toole, “Barney Moore”, in Blackwood Magazine:

     Many a blowen of saloonic fame

References

• “blowen”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• Bowlen

Dutch

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *bʰel-

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₁-

Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₁-der.

Proto-Germanic *blēaną

Proto-West Germanic *blāan

Old English blāwan

Middle English blowen

English blowbor.

Dutch blowen

Borrowed from English blow.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbloː.ə(n)/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: blo‧wen
• Rhymes: -oːən

Verb

blowen

1. (intransitive) to smoke weed

Conjugation

Conjugation of blowen (weak)
infinitive	blowen
past singular	blowde
past participle	geblowd
infinitive	blowen
gerund	blowen n
	present tense	past tense
1st person singular	blow	blowde
2nd person sing. (jij)	blowt, blow2	blowde
2nd person sing. (u)	blowt	blowde
2nd person sing. (gij)	blowt	blowde
3rd person singular	blowt	blowde
plural	blowen	blowden
subjunctive sing.1	blowe	blowde
subjunctive plur.1	blowen	blowden
imperative sing.	blow
imperative plur.1	blowt
participles	blowend	geblowd
1) Archaic. 2) In case of inversion.

Derived terms

• blowverbod

References

• van der Sijs, Nicoline, editor (2010), “blowen”, in Etymologiebank, Meertens Institute

Middle English

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old English blāwan, from Proto-West Germanic *blāan, from Proto-Germanic *blēaną.

Alternative forms

• blouen, blow, blowe, blowyn
• blawe (Northern or Kent)
• blawen, bloawen (Early Middle English)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈblɔu̯ən/
• (Northern) IPA^(key): /ˈblɑu̯(ən)/

Verb

blowen

1. To blow (produce a current of air):
   1. To blow away; to blow to eliminate or remove.
   2. To breathe (in or out); to inhale or exhale.
   3. To play a wind instrument (by blowing)
   4. To strengthen a fire by blowing on it.
   5. To inflate or blow up; to expand by blowing.
   6. To gasp; to struggle to breathe.
2. To spread a communicable disease (by exhalation).
3. To smelt; to extract metal from ore.
4. To make a sound, especially flatulence.
5. To insult or brag (talk coarsely)
6. To proclaim; to broadly disseminate.
7. (rare) To be blown around (by wind).

Conjugation

Conjugation of blowen (strong class 7)

infinitive	(to) blowen, blowe
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	blowe	blew
2nd-person singular	blowest	blewe1
3rd-person singular	bloweth	blew
subjunctive singular	blowe	blewe2
imperative singular		—
plural3	blowen, blowe	blewen, blewe
imperative plural	bloweth, blowe	—
participles	blowynge, blowende	blowen, blowe, yblowen, yblowe

¹ Later replaced by the 1st-/3rd-person singular or blewest.
² Later replaced by the indicative.
³ Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Derived terms

• blow
• blowere
• blowynge

Descendants

• English: blow
• Geordie: blaw
• Scots: blaw
• Yola: bla

References

• “blouen, v.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 14 July 2018.

Etymology 2

Inherited from Old English blōwan, from Proto-West Germanic *blōan, from Proto-Germanic *blōaną.

Alternative forms

• blowe

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈblɔu̯ən/

Verb

blowen

1. To blossom; to flower.
   • a. 1250, unknown, “Sumer is icumen in”‎^[1]:

     Lhude sing cuccu / Groweþ sed / and bloweþ med

     Sing loudly, cuckoo! / seed grows / and fields bloom

2. (figurative) To grow, to flourish.

Usage notes

This verb is occasionally weak, but usually remains strong, probably due to influence from Etymology 1.

Conjugation

Conjugation of blowen (strong class 7)

infinitive	(to) blowen, blowe
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	blowe	blew
2nd-person singular	blowest	blewe1
3rd-person singular	bloweth	blew
subjunctive singular	blowe	blewe2
imperative singular		—
plural3	blowen, blowe	blewen, blewe
imperative plural	bloweth, blowe	—
participles	blowynge, blowende	blowen, blowe, yblowen, yblowe

¹ Later replaced by the 1st-/3rd-person singular or blewest.
² Later replaced by the indicative.
³ Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Derived terms

• blowynge

Descendants

• English: blow

References

• “blouen, v.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 12 July 2018.

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbloː.wen/

Verb

blōwen

1. plural present subjunctive of blōwan

Participle

blōwen

1. past participle of blōwan