Home UK English adown

Meaning of adown in English:

adown

Pronunciation /əˈdaʊn/

adverb

(also adoon)
poetic, rare, archaic

  • To a lower place or position; downward, down; towards the earth. Frequently with verbs of motion, often those signifying descent, as fall, sink, kneel, etc.

preposition

(also adoon)
poetic, rare, archaic

  • Figurative and in figurative contexts. During, over the course of, or after (a period of time); throughout (the course of time).

Origin

Old English; earliest use found in King Alfred (c848–899), king of the West Saxons and of the Anglo-Saxons. From of + down, with the literal meaning ‘from the hill’.