welkin

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English welken, wolken (“weather; heavens; earlier cloud”), from Old English wolcnu (“sky, heavens”), plural form of wolcn (“cloud”), from Proto-West Germanic *wolkn (“cloud”), from Proto-Germanic *wulkną (“cloud”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥ɡ-no-m, from *welg- (“damp; wet”). Cognate with Dutch wolk (“cloud”), German Wolke (“cloud”).

In classic literature

Synonyms

celestial sphere, sphere, empyrean, firmament, heavens, vault of heaven

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