Stalworth

//ˈstɔːl.wəθ// adj, name, noun

adj, name, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Stalwart. archaic, obsolete
Adjective
  1. 1
    Stalwart. archaic, obsolete

    "Our blooming friend, the handsome and stalworth Magnolia, having got a confidential hint from agitated Mrs. Mack, trudged up to the mills, in a fine frenzy, vowing vengeance on Mary Matchwell, for she liked poor Sally Nutter well."

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname transferred from the nickname.

Example

More examples

"Our blooming friend, the handsome and stalworth Magnolia, having got a confidential hint from agitated Mrs. Mack, trudged up to the mills, in a fine frenzy, vowing vengeance on Mary Matchwell, for she liked poor Sally Nutter well."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English stalworth, stal-worth (“physically strong, hardy, robust; brave, courageous”), from Old English stǣlwierþe (“able to stand in good stead, serviceable”), probably from staþol (“establishment; foundation”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand (up)”)) or stǣl (“place; condition, stead”) + -wierþe (suffix meaning “able to, capable of”) (probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to rotate, turn”)). Displaced by stalwart, which forms a doublet. Compare staddle and worth.

Etymology 2

Nickname for a well-built or brave person, from Middle English stalworth (“physically strong, hardy, robust; brave, courageous”), from Old English stǣlwierþe (“able to stand in good stead, serviceable”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.