All 15 Uses of
wax
in
Beowulf
- He wonneth well-faring, nothing him wasteth
Sickness nor eld, nor the foe-sorrow to him
Dark in mind waxeth, nor strife any where,
The edge-hate, appeareth; but all the world for him
Wends as he willeth, and the worse naught he wotteth.†*waxeth = gradually increasesstandard suffix: Today, the suffix "-eth" is replaced by "-s", so that where they said "It waxeth" in older English, today we say "It waxes."
- Until that within him a deal of o'erthink-ing 1740
Waxeth and groweth while sleepeth the warder,
The soul's herdsman; that slumber too fast is forsooth,
Fast bounden by troubles, the banesman all nigh,
E'en he that from arrow-bow evilly shooteth.†
Uses with a meaning too common or too rare to warrant foucs:
- Oft then Scyld the Sheaf-son from the hosts of the scathers,
From kindreds a many the mead-settles tore;
It was then the earl fear'd them, sithence was he first
Found bare and all-lacking; so solace he bided,
Wax'd under the welkin in worship to thrive,
Until it was so that the round-about sitters
All over the whale-road must hearken his will 10
And yield him the tribute.†
- He therefore, the Life-lord,
The Wielder of glory, world's worship he gave him:
Brim Beowulf waxed, and wide the weal upsprang
Of the offspring of Scyld in the parts of the Scede-lands.†
- I therefore to Hrothgar
Through my mind fashion'd roomsome the rede may now learn him,
How he, old-wise and good, may get the fiend under,
If once more from him awayward may turn 280
The business of bales, and the boot come again,
And the weltering of care wax cooler once more;
Or for ever sithence time of stress he shall thole,
The need and the wronging, the while yet there abideth
On the high stead aloft the best of all houses.†
- Then she greeted the Geat-lord, and gave God the thank,
She, the wisefast In words, that the will had wax'd in her
In one man of the earls to have trusting and troth
For comfort from crimes.†
- Then swiftly was finding the herdsman of fouldeeds 750
That forsooth he had met not in Middle-garth ever,
In the parts of the earth, in any man else
A hand-grip more mighty; then wax'd he of mood
Heart-fearful, but none the more outward might he;
Hence-eager his heart was to the darkness to hie him,
And the devil-dray seek: not there was his service
E'en such as he found in his life-days before.†
- The warrior-hall dinn'd now; unto all Danes there waxed,
To the castle-abiders, to each of the keen ones,
To all earls, as an ale-dearth.†*
- So sung was the lay,
The song of the gleeman; then again arose game, 1160
The bench-voice wax'd brighter, gave forth the birlers
Wine of the wonder-vats.†
- Naught such became Heremod
To Ecgwela's offspring, the honourful Scyldings; 1710
For their welfare naught wax'd he, but for felling in slaughter,
For the quelling of death to the folk of the Danes.†
- But all them had death borne away
In the times of erewhile; and the one at the last
Of the doughty of that folk that there longest lived,
There waxed he friend-sad, yet ween'd he to tarry,
That he for a little those treasures the longsome
Might brook for himself.†
- O'erswam then the waters' round Ecgtheow's son,
Came all wretched and byrd-alone back to his people,
Whereas offer'd him Hygd then the kingdom and hoard,
The rings and the king-stool: trowed naught in the child,
That he 'gainst folks outland the fatherland-seats 2370
Might can how to hold, now was Hygelac dead:
Yet no sooner therefor might the poor folk prevail
To gain from the Atheling in any of ways
That he unto Heardred would be for a lord,
Or eke that that kingdom henceforward should choose;
Yet him midst of the folk with friend-lore he held,
All kindly with honour till older he waxed
And wielded the Weder-Geats.†
- Then asunder burst Naegling,
Waxed weak in the war-tide, e'en Beowulf's sword, 2680
The old and grey-marked; to him was not given
That to him any whit might the edges of irons
Be helpful in battle; over-strong was the hand
Which every of swords, by the hearsay of me,
With its swing over-wrought, when he bare unto strife
A wondrous hard weapon; naught it was to him better.†
- Then was the folk-scather for the third of times yet,
The fierce fire-drake, all mindful of feud;
He rac'd on that strong one, when was room to him given,
Hot and battle-grim; he all the halse of him gripped 2690
With bitter-keen bones; all bebloody'd he waxed
With the gore of his soul.†
- And now shall the gleed fret away,
The wan flame a-waxing, the strong one of warriors,
Him who oft-times abided the shower of iron
When the storm of the shafts driven on by the strings
Shook over the shield-wall, and the shaft held its service,
And eager with feather-gear follow'd the barb.†
Definitions:
-
(1)
(wax as in: the moon is waxing) a gradual increase (in size or strength or power or number) -- especially the part of the moon that is visible
-
(2)
(meaning too common or rare to warrant focus) More commonly, wax is used to refer to a soft substance that melts when warmed and is seen in candles, crayons, beehives, polishes, and even the human ear. The word can also be used as a verb to refer to rubbing a coat of wax onto something such as a car or floor or furniture to protect it from water and/or improve appearance. Wax put on a surfboard also provides less slippery footing than the fiberglass board.
Wax can also be used as a verb to refer to the process of removing hair from the body by applying warm wax to the area being treated and pulling it off after it has cooled around the hair, so that the hair is pulled out from the root.
Less commonly, wax can refer to a stated manner of speech or writing; e.g., "She waxed eloquent," means that she talked in an eloquent manner. "She waxed on," means that talked more or for a longer time.