/neɪ/
OriginFrom Middle English neyen, from Old English hnǣġan, from Proto-West Germanic *hnaijan, from Proto-Germanic *hnajjaną (“to neigh”). Cognate with dialectal Dutch neien, Middle Low German neigen, Swedish gnägga, Icelandic hneggja.
- To make its cry.
“For hovv […] ſhall I knovv thee to be a man, vvhen thou kickeſt like an aſſe, neygheſt like an Horſe after vvomen, raueſt in luſt like a Bull, raueneſt like a Beare, ſtingeſt like a Scorpion, rakeſt l”
“"I went into the stable first to see to the horse, and found him neighing and waiting for his hay, so I went up into the hay-loft for an armful[.]"”
- To make a sound similar to a horse's cry.
- obsoleteTo scoff or sneer.
“Yes, yes, 'tis he. I will assure you Uncle, the very he, the he your Wisdom plaid withal, I thank you for't, neighed at his Nakedness, and made his Cold and Poverty your Pastime; […]”
Formsneighs(plural) · neighs(present, singular, third-person) · neighing(participle, present) · neighed(participle, past) · neighed(past)