blain

Meaning

A skin swelling or sore; a blister; a blotch.

Synonyms

pimple

abscess

blister

boil

follicle

inflammation

pustule

vesicle

whelp

bladder

Pronounced as (IPA)

/bleɪn/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: blein

Inherited from Old English: bleġen

Cognate with Western Frisian: blein

Cognate with Dutch: blein

Cognate with Middle Low German: bleine

Cognate with Norwegian: bleime

Cognate with French: bleime

In summary

From Middle English blein, from Old English bleġen, bleġene, from Proto-Germanic *blajinǭ, *blajjinǭ, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- (“to swell up”). Cognate with West Frisian blein (“blain”), Dutch blein, blegn (“blain”), Middle Low German bleine (“blain”). Related also to dialectal Norwegian bleime (“blister”), Old Swedish blēma (“blister”), French bleime (“an inflammation of a horse's hoof”).