Wist

Past indicative of wit: from Old English witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European *weyd-, *wid- ("see, know"). Cognate with Dutch weten, German wissen, Swedish veta, and Latin videō ("I see"). Compare guide.

Verb

1. (archaic)

   wist

   (past of wit)
• a1796, Robert Burns, "Bonie Jean: A Ballad", in Poems and Songs, P.F. Collier & Son (1909–14), Bartleby.com (2001), http://www.bartleby.com/6/419.html,And lang ere witless Jeanie wist,
  Her heart was tint, her peace was stown!

A misunderstanding, or a joking use of the past indicative of wit: from Old English witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European *weyd-, *wid- ("see, know"). Cognate with Dutch weten, German wissen, Swedish veta, and Latin videō ("I see"). Compare guide.

Full definition of wist

Verb

1. (nonstandard, pseudo-archaic) To know, be aware of.

Usage notes

This use of wist was never a part of the regular English language; rather, it resulted from the erroneous attempted use of archaisms.

Anagrams

• wits