DictionaryRoot: on
Old English
on
on, in
Forms
- on
- an — An Old English variant, especially in unstressed use.
- a- — Developed from an unstressed form in some English words.
Origin
Proto-Germanic *ana, ‘on.’
Note
An initial a- can preserve an old preposition rather than express negation.
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adverb
asunder
uh-SUN-der/əˈsʌndər/
Apart into separate pieces or positions.
Etymology
The pieces express movement into an apart or separate position. Asunder therefore describes the resulting separation, whether things are broken into pieces or simply moved away from one another.
Related word entries
- abackBackward
- abackSurprised
- abaft
- aboutReversed direction
- aboutSurrounding area
- aboutConcerning a subject
- aboutApproximation
- aboutImminent action
- above
- abroad
- afield
- afloat
- againstOpposition
- againstComparison
- againstSurface contact
- alike
- alive
- amid
- among
- asleep
- asunder
- awayDistance or absence
- awayContinued action
- live
- online
- thereonOn that
- thereonImmediately afterward
- uponPosition or contact
- uponTime of an event