Gegna

Old Norse Dictionary - gegna

Meaning of Old Norse word "gegna" in English.

As defined by the Cleasby & Vigfusson Old Norse to English dictionary:

gegna Old Norse word can mean:

gegna: d, [Germ. begegnen, cp. gegn, the adv.], to go against, meet, encounter; hann hafði þar mikit lið ok skyldi g. Birkibeinum, Fms. vii. 324; g. þeim er á sund hlaupa, ix. 22; skyldu þeir g. um njósnir ok annask vegu alla, Sturl. iii. 236.

gegna: II. metaph.,

gegna: 1. to meet an engagement, to pay, discharge; ef hann á bú, þótt hann gegni eigi tillögum, though he pays no rates, Grág. i. 160; þá á hón at g. þriðjungi (take the third part of the charges) fyrir ómaga þeirra, 337; ok skal hann þá g. (account, redress) við hinn ef landsleigur væri minni en verðit, ii. 239: as a law term, of a duty, to meet, discharge; but also of rights, to be entitled to; þá g. börn beggja arfi, n. G. l. i. 33; ok g. réttum öllum, 55; g. kostnaði, Fms. viii. 371: to pay, g. þingfarar-kaupi, Grág. passim, Ísl. ii. 344, Íb. ch. 10; g. skyldu sinni, to do one’s duty:—g. líkum, ok syngja sálu-messu, to meet the bodies, of the officiating clergyman, n. G. l. i. 390.

gegna: 2. to suit one, be meet for one; velit þat er yðr gegnir, choose what best suits you, 623. 30; leyfi þér honum at fara sem honum gegnir bezt, Nj. 10, Fms. viii. 102; þat man bezt g. (be meetest) at þín ráð sé höfð, Nj. 24, Fs. 155; kjöri hann þat af er betr gegndi, Fms. i. 202; mun þat betr g., it will do better, iv. 209; ok mun mér þat allvel g., 237; hve ílla mönnum gegndi (how ill it suited men) at fara, Íb. 8; þann kost er þér gegnir verr, Fs. 134; þá gegnir þat, it is fit, Sks. 433.

gegna: 3. to signify, mean, matter; ok spurði, ef hann vissi nökkut hverju gegndi, if he knew what was the matter, Eg. 53; spurðu hverju at gegndi um ferðir hans, Rd. 237; spurði, hverju gegndi úgleði sú er hann hafði, asked, what his sadness meant, Eg. 518; spyrr, hverju gegndi þyss sjá eða kliðr, Gísl. 56; sumir maeltu í móti, ok kváðu öngu g., some denied it, and said it went for nothing, Nj. 25; Háls kvað þat mundu öngu g., Rd. 237; það gegnir furðu, it means a wonder, it is astonishing; hví gegnir (what means?) þetta atkvæði? 656 B. 5; er helzt sá at ráði gegndi, i. e. where he saw that there was reason in it, Fms. vii. 257; g. tíðendum, to be of importance, of great consequence; séð hefi ek þat er ek ætla tíðendum muni g., Ld. 272; meir en hófi gegnir, more than is due, above measure, Fms. vii. 132; er viti gegnir, which has sense or meaning, Al. 6; um hluti þá er íþróttum gegndi, which imply or can be called art, Ó. H. 102:—of numbers, to amount to, svá at mörgum hundruðum gegndi, so that it amounted to several hundreds, by many hundreds, Fas. iii. 356; svá náttum gegndi, i. e. several nights, Ld. 304, v. l.; at degi einum vas fleira en heilum vikum gegndi í tveim misserum, i. e. that in a year there is one day over the complete number of weeks, Íb. 7: with gen. (rare), mér þyki tvennra vandræða g., it is a double difficulty, i. e. on both sides, Grett. 143 A.

gegna: 4. to answer, reply, freq. in mod. usage, with dat. of the person and the reply; hann gegnir öngu, he gives no reply; hann gegnir mér ekki, he does not answer me.

gegna: β. to yield, be obedient; hann gegnir öngum, he obeys none, is cross and disobedient, freq. in mod. usage.

Possible runic inscription in Younger Futhark:ᚴᛁᚴᚾᛅ
Younger Futhark runes were used from 8th to 12th centuries in Scandinavia and their overseas settlements

Abbreviations used:

adv.: adverb.

cp.: compare.

Germ.: German.

l.: line.

m.: masculine.

v.: vide.

metaph.: metaphorical, metaphorically.

ch.: chapter.

L.: Linnæus.

gen.: genitive.

i. e.: id est.

n.: neuter.

v. l.: varia lectio.

dat.: dative.

freq.: frequent, frequently.

mod.: modern.

Works & Authors cited:

Fms.: Fornmanna Sögur. (E. I.)

Sturl.: Sturlunga Saga. (D. I.)

Grág.: Grágás. (B. I.)

Íb.: Íslendinga-bók. (D. I.)

N. G. L.: Norges Gamle Love. (B. II.)

Fs.: Forn-sögur. (D. II.)

Nj.: Njála. (D. II.)

Sks.: Konungs Skugg-sjá. (H. II.)

Al.: Alexanders Saga. (G. I.)

Eg.: Egils Saga. (D. II.)

Fas.: Fornaldar Sögur. (C. II.)

Gísl.: Gísla Saga. (D. II.)

Grett.: Grettis Saga. (D. II.)

Ld.: Laxdæla Saga. (D. II.)

Ó. H.: Ólafs Saga Helga. (E. I.)

Rd.: Reykdæla Saga. (D. II.)

➞ See all works cited in the dictionary

Also available in related dictionaries:

This headword also appears in dictionaries of other languages descending from Old Norse.