English

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Etymology

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From Middle English bocstaff, bocstaf (letter; symbol; written character), from Old English bōcstæf (letter, written symbol), from Proto-Germanic *bōkastabaz, equivalent to book +‎ stave (inflected form of staff). Compare modern Norwegian bokstav, Swedish bokstav, Danish bogstav, modern German Buchstabe, modern Dutch boekstaaf.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈbʊk.steɪv/, /ˈbʊk.stɪv/

Noun

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bookstave (plural bookstaves)

  1. (rare or archaic) Alternative form of bookstaff (letter, alphabetic symbol)
    • 2018, Christopher Ocker, Luther, Conflict, and Christendom:
      [] “[Doctor Martin] had undercut the pope, cardinals, and the great bishops, ... he had proved they could not offer so much as a bookstave from holy scripture to prove that their great power and lordship were based on God's command.
    • 2019, James Meek, To Calais, In Ordinary Time:
      'I can't read bookstaves, but Holiday learned himself,' said Softly. [] 'He learned me a bare five bookstaves, but it was enough to read a whole word.'
    • 2020, D. Vance Smith, Arts of Dying, page 43:
      The poetic dialogue between Solomon and Saturn not only calls the rune for R the “best of bookstaves” (bocstafa brego), but it also spells out the Pater Noster, acrostically with runes, []
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