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hwæt

interrogative pronoun and exclamation

1. what?
2. who?
3. something, anything (in relative use)
4. an exclamation opening narrative ('Lo!', 'Behold!')

Etymology. From Proto-Germanic *hwat-, cognate with German was, Dutch wat, and Gothic hwa. Related to Latin quod (neuter of relative pronoun) through shared Indo-European origin *kwo-. The concrete sense is 'which of the options' and 'that which'.

Dictionary entry by Claude.

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