FromProto-Germanic*þai, which shares the same root asOld Englishþæt.
þā m orf orn
- inflection ofse:
- accusativefemininesingular
- nominative/accusativeplural
þā m orf orn
- inflection ofsē:
- accusativefemininesingular
- nominative/accusativeplural
þā m orf orn
- inflection ofsē:
- accusativefemininesingular
- nominative/accusativeplural
FromProto-West Germanic*þō.
þā
- then
- 981C.E.AS Chronicles:
Her comon ærestþa VII scipu and gehergoden Hamtun- then in this year first came 7 ships, and ravaged Southampton
- Generally only used for past-tense statements. In non-past-tense clauses,þonne is used instead.
- When used as an adverb,þā is frequently used as the first element of the clause, with the finite verb immediately following it as the second, although exceptions exist.
þā
- when,since,because,where
- early 11th centuryC.E.Ælfwine’s Prayerbook:
hio wæs feowortyne geara ealdþa hio Crist acende- she was 14 years old when she gave birth to Christ
- Does not mean "when" in the interrogative sense. For questions,hwonne is used instead.
- Generally only used for past-tense statements. For "when" in non-past-tense clauses,þonne is used instead.
- Often doubled asþā þā to avoid confusion with the adverb.
- When used as a conjunction, the verb in the following clause typically does not occur immediately afterþā (often being found at the end of the clause), unlike when it is used as an adverb.
