ᴱ√GWETE root. “*wind, turn, bend”
A root given as the basis for the verb G. gwed- “wind, turn, bend (intr.)” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, with other derivatives like ᴱQ. wente/G. gwent “brook, small river” (GL/46). It seems to be an updated form of ᴱ√GWEÐE of similar meaning as it appeared in the contemporaneous Qenya Lexicon, since Tolkien first wrote this verb as gwedh- and the primitive form as gu̯eđ before changing it to gwed- < gu̯et. However, despite gu̯eđ >> gu̯et Tolkien did leave most of the gwedh- derivatives unchanged, so it seems he was undecided only whether ᴱ√GWETE replaced ᴱ√GWEÐE or was just a variant. In any case, there are no signs of any of these roots in Tolkien’s later writing.
References ✧ GL/46
Variations
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Derivatives