(a) To act, behave, proceed; act (in a specified way), proceed (on the basis of sth., according to sth.), act (so as to do sth.), do (as one should, as sb. enjoins, according to sth., etc.); ~ with tonge, ?swear; (b) to establish one’s customary behavior (in accordance with a specified set of principles, according to God’s will, by someone’s example, etc.), habitually conduct oneself; (c) ~ ayen (ayenes), to reject, try to subvert, or habitually violate (divine or civil law, moral codes, the church, etc.), defy (God, God’s will, etc.); (d) to be active, busy oneself; ~ in hit-self, of the stomach: ?be agitated or unsettled, churn; ~ upon, be active in committing (sin); ppl. werking, busy, occupied, active; inciting to activity, impelling [quots. ?a1425 and c1454]; (e) ~ with, to act (in a specified way) toward (sb. or sth.), deal with, treat; also, ?treat (sth.) intellectually, discourse upon [quot. ?c1450].

(a) To perform a function, operate; work toward a specific purpose; operate (in a specified manner); work (in or through a person, nature, etc.); theol. of the Holy Spirit: be indwelling; ~ togeder, cooperate; ppl. werking, operating; also, operative, functioning [last quot.]; werking togeder, acting together; (b) to have or exert an influence; produce an effect (on sb.); astrol. reign in a sphere, affect earthly events; also, influence (what falls to a sign) [last quot.]; (c) to be efficacious, have the expected or desired effect, work; also in fig. context [last quot.]; med. & surg. have therapeutic efficacy, be effective as a treatment; ppl. werking as adj.: therapeutically active.

(a) To perform (an action), do (a deed); engage in (an activity); do (one’s assigned task), discharge (one’s duties), complete (a job); perform (a function); also, with somewhat diminished force, in constructions with indef. or rel. pron. as direct obj.; ~ litel, accomplish little; ~ on werk, perform a single function, work as one; ben wrought to ende, be over; (b) to carry off (a feat of arms or skill), accomplish; work (wonders, a miracle, etc.); also, play (a trick), pull off (a deception); (c) to carry out (the command or specific wish of sb. or God), execute (an order), do (someone’s bidding); acquiesce to (the desire, proposal, etc. of sb.); also, put (fleshly urgings, someone’s advice) into action, act upon; ~ cristen (godes) werkes, ~ godes werk, etc., carry out God’s purposes, serve God; also, meet one’s religious obligations; ~ develes werk, further the devil’s ends, serve Satan; (d) to practice (faith, truth, virtue, etc.), uphold; make a practice of doing (good, good deeds), busy oneself with; (e) to commit (a wrongful or foolish act, sin, folly), perpetrate (evil, a crime, an act of treachery or injustice), do (a harmful deed); ppl. werking as noun: those who perpetrate (wrongs), those who work (evil); ppl. wrought, done, already committed [quot. a1400]; (f) to wage (war), engage in (strife or hostile action).

In selected phrases, chiefly with wil(le n.: (a) ~ cristes (drihtenes, godes, his, etc.) wille, to demonstrate obedience to or conformity with the divine will, habitually keep God’s commandments; (b) ~ wille, to have (one’s own) way, freely exercise (one’s) will, satisfy (one’s) desires; ~ wikke (wilde) wille, behave willfully or unrestrainedly; (c) ~ lust (wille), to take (one’s) sexual pleasure; ~ wille, have (one’s) way sexually (with sb.).

In selected idiomatic uses: (a) ~ almesse (werkes, ~ werkes of merci, to do alms, perform an act of charity (mercy); ~ maumetrie, practice idolatry; ~ penaunce (travail, werkes of penaunce), do penance (an act of penitential suffering); (b) ~ blessinge, to invoke a blessing (on sb.); ~ rode-token, make the sign of the cross; ~ sacrament of the auter (servise), celebrate the Eucharist (divine service); (c) ~ wedlokes, to contract marriages; (d) ~ worship, to do honor (to sb.), be solicitous of (someone’s) reputation; display one’s piety, show reverence; (e) ~ decre (dom), to render a judgment; (f) ~ feie-sith (morth-game), to be engaged in a deadly venture (lethal game); (g) ~ peine, to make (one’s) most strenuous efforts (to do sth.).

(a) To set (sth., a set of events) into motion, act to bring about; cause (sth.); effect (a cure, forgiveness, salvation); also, contrive (sth.); bring it about (that sth. should happen) [quot. a1470]; (b) to result in (a state or condition), lead to; ~ to the werse, lead to misfortune; (c) to bring (sth. on sb., sth. to sb.); cause (sb.) to experience (grace, prosperity, well-being, etc.); cause (harm, ruin, sorrow, etc.) to be visited (on sb. or sth.) or befall (sb. or sth.); ~ woundes, inflict injuries on (sb.); ever werke hem wo, may sorrow ever befall them; (d) to cause (sb.) to become (sth.), make (sb. or oneself sth.); also, cause (sb.) to be or come to be (in a particular state); cause (sb.) to be (glorious or destitute); ~ to (in, oute of, with); (e) to bring (sb. in or into a place or condition); also, put (sth. into sth.) [quot. ?c1450].

In idiomatic phrases, occas. with somewhat diminished causal force: (a) ~ frendshipe (frith, grith, love, saughtnesse), to establish peace, promote amity; ~ frend, ?create amity, make friends; ~ hatinge (riote), stir up hatred (civil disturbance), promote enmity; (b) ~ grace, to cause divine grace to be manifest; manifest grace (in sb.).

(a) To perform physical labor, work with one’s hands, toil; do servile or humble work, perform menial tasks; also, work for a living; work as opposed to observing the Sabbath, work as opposed to being idle or getting into mischief; also in names of allegorical characters [quots. c1400]; (b) to perform (physical labor), carry out (one’s daily work); (c) to do construction work, erect a structure; work (on a structure, toward the completion of a building, etc.); also, arrange for construction work; commission work (on a structure); (d) to do excavation, dig in the ground, tunnel [quots. ?a1425 & c1540]; quarry [quot. c1450]; also, dig (a hole); mine (a metal); cultivate (the earth), till (one’s land); (e) to tax or exert oneself physically; put psychological effort into something; struggle (to accomplish sth.), strive; also, persevere in a course of action; (f) to exercise military might or hostile strength; also in fig. context [quot. a1500(c1477)]; offer resistance to someone, put up a fight; also, war on (sb.), harry [last quot.].

To perform sexually, engage in sexual relations; ~ (up) togeder; ~ the dede, ~ that wo togeder, have intercourse.

(a) To exercise manual skill, work at a craft or trade; hold employment as an artisan or a tradesman; (b) to practice (a trade, craft), ply (one’s trade); (c) to perform a particular skilled operation pertaining to a craft, trade, or discipline; specif. forge metal, cut stone, weave cords in lacing, etc.; ~ with som other tol, fig. try a different approach, change one’s tack; (d) med. & surg. to perform medical or surgical procedures, operate; also, treat (a morbid condition), lance or excise (a tumor) [quots. ?c1425].

(a) To compel or permit (sb.) to labor or work at a craft, hire; (b) ?to administer, apply, or employ (a medicine).

(a) To work at a discipline, practice an art; work magic [1st quot.]; also, practice (witchcraft) [quot. a1400]; (b) to perform calculations, figure; ~ forth; (c) ~ on, ?to conduct business on the stake of (a sum of money), invest.

(a) To exercise creative power, be a creator [quot. c1175, last occurrence]; bring into existence (sb., oneself, sth., the world, etc.), create; make (man from sth.); fashion or shape (sb. or sth.); fashion or shape (sb., a part of the body, or an animal in a particular way);—usu. used of God; ppl. wrought, created; fashioned; (b) ben wrought to, to be allotted to (sb.); wrought in-to, infused into (sb.); (c) to bring forth or cause to bring forth (fruit, young, etc.) by natural processes; also in fig. context [1st quot.]; also, generate (sth.) by alchemical processes; ?initiate (a natural process) [quot. a1398]; ben wrought (man, be born, come into the world;—used chiefly in extravagant expressions of despair or grief.

(a) To fashion (a utilitarian or decorative object, etc.), produce by craftsmanship; make up (a garment), sew; also, ?create an image (of wax) [quot. a1150, 2nd]; (b) to weave (fabric); (c) to construct (a building or part of a building, a city, an ark, etc.), build; also in fig. context; also, build (a nest); commission (a structure), have built; lay out (a garden, a vineyard); ~ up; (d) to paint, embroider, or sculpt (a representation of sth.); carve (an inscription), engrave; ben wrought in wit, fig. of a tune: be inscribed in (one’s) memory; (e) ?to do fancywork with (silk thread, gold, etc.) [1st 2 quots.]; ppl. wrought, decorated, adorned; also, embroidered; (f) ppl. wirkede as noun: ?instruments or tools.

(a) To formulate (a plan, terms), devise; establish (a set of conventions, an order); ?propound (laws); (b) to compose a written work [quot. c1450 Mandev.(4)]; write (a liturgical work, letter, legal code, psalm, etc.); (c) to utter (spoken words); produce (song, music), compose; (d) to generate (illusory phenomena), raise (specters); (e) to make (space for sth.); make (a way), create (open spaces); also fig.

(a) To prepare a specific dish [quot. a1325]; concoct (a mixture, recipe, etc.), mix up, prepare; also iron. [1st quot.]; also, combine (ingredients into a salve); ~ togeder; ppl. wrought as adj.: skillfully prepared; (b) to put together (a medicinal plaster or poultice), make up; also, fix up (a bed), prepare; (c) ben wrought of, of years: to be compounded (of individual nights); (d) ~ in, ?to introduce (a medication) by means of an enema or enema pipe;—used without obj.; (e) wrought up, fig. of enmity: compounded (with or by renewed hostilities).

(a) To perform physical operations on (a material, substance, etc.) so as to change its composition, form, or texture, knead, mold, stir; also, reduce (sth. to powder); work (a dye mixture onto a cloth); ~ up; ~ sinewealt, make (sth.) into a ball; (b) to perform physical operations on (metal) so as to change its composition, appearance, or useful properties, smelt, refine, or forge; also, hammer or beat (brass, silver, etc.); ~ amonges, alloy (one metal) with (another); ppl. wrought as adj.: beaten or refined; hard wrought, smelted or alloyed so as to be hardened; (c) to perform physical operations on (wood, stone) so as to alter its shape, size, or surface, hew, trim, cut; cleneli wrought, of a gravestone: ?neatly carved; (d) to perform chemical operations on (leather), tan; also, work with (leather) [2nd quot.]; ppl. wrought, tooled, worked; (e) alch. to perform chemical operations (on blood); (f) to carve (a game animal into quarters); (g) to manipulate (materials), work with [quot. c1440];—used in fig. context; fig. shape (sb. for a purpose), fit [1st quot.]; ben wrought, of cloth: be made (into a garment); of women’s tresses: ?be braided or twisted into rope.

To transform (one substance or object into another), turn (sth. to sth. else); produce (one thing from another); also fig.

(a) ?To exact punitive vengeance, take revenge [quot. ?c1421; could also be construed as sense 5.(e)]; also, punish (sin, wrong) [cp. wreken v.]; (b) to distress (sb. or sth.), harass, ruin; (c) to rage or curse;—prob. error for wrethen v.(1).