Ring-giver
noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A ruler or chieftain who distributed rings or other valuable gifts to loyal warriors, thanes, or retainers as a means of rewarding service and reinforcing bonds of allegiance and mutual obligation. Old-English, historical
"This kind of money was probably used by the Anglo-Saxons long after their settlement in England; and the name of "ring-giver," as an epithet of princes, was preserved perhaps to the time of the Norman conquest."
Example
More examples"This kind of money was probably used by the Anglo-Saxons long after their settlement in England; and the name of "ring-giver," as an epithet of princes, was preserved perhaps to the time of the Norman conquest."
Etymology
Literary calque of Old English bēagġiefa, from bēag (“ring”) + ġiefa (“giver”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.