twain

(twān)

n.adj. & pron.

Two.

[Middle English tweien, twaine, from Old English twēgen; see dwo- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

twain

(tweɪn)

determiner, n

an archaic word for two

[Old English twēgen; related to Old Saxon twēne, Old High German zwēne, Old Norse tveir, Gothic twai]

Twain

(tweɪn)

1. (Biography) Mark, pen name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens. 1835–1910, US novelist and humorist, famous for his classics The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885)

2. (Biography) Shania (ʃəˈnaɪə), real name Eilleen Regina Edwards. born 1965, Canadian country-rock singer; her bestselling recordings include The Woman In Me (1995), Come On Over (1997), and UP! (2002)

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

twain

(tweɪn)

adj., n.

two.

[before 900; Middle English twayn orig., nominative and acc. masculine, Old English twēgen (compare two)]

Twain

(tweɪn)

n.

Mark, pen name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

twain - two items of the same kind

couplet, distich, duad, duet, duo, dyad, twosome, brace, pair, span, yoke, couple

fellow, mate - one of a pair; "he lost the mate to his shoe"; "one eye was blue but its fellow was brown"

2, II, two, deuce - the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number

doubleton - (bridge) a pair of playing cards that are the only cards in their suit in the hand dealt to a player

Translations

paio

twain

(archaic) [tweɪn] N the twain → los dos
to split sth in twain → partir algo en dos
and ne'er the twain shall meet → sin que el uno se acerque al otro jamás

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

twain

n (old) → zwei; in twain → entzwei (old); and ne’er the twain shall meet → sie werden nie zueinanderfinden

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

twain

[tweɪn] npl (old) (poetic) the twain → i (or le) due
and never the twai shall meet → e mai i (or le) due si incontreranno

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

But the warm twilight round us twain Will never rise again.

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The naked hulk alongside came, And the twain were casting dice; "The game is done!

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Empty are still many sites for lone ones and twain ones, around which floateth the odour of tranquil seas.

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He it is Hath robbed me of my all, my daughters twain.

There I might chance behold Theseus our captain bold Meet with the robber band, Ere they have fled the land, Rescue by might and main Maidens, the captives twain.

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"I'd rather be a little drop In the great rushing fall; I'd never choose the quiet lake; 'T would not please me at all." (It was the darker maiden spoke The words we just have stated; The maidens twain were simply friends, Not sisters, or related.)

'T would not suit me at all!" (It was the darker maiden spoke The words I just have stated, The maidens twain were simply friends And not at all related.)

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For, had I sight, I know not with what eyes I could have met my father in the shades, Or my poor mother, since against the twain I sinned, a sin no gallows could atone.

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For though I tried to move his arm --unlock his bridegroom clasp --yet, sleeping as he was, he still hugged me tightly, as though naught but death should part us twain. I now strove to rouse him --

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Though such a potent spell seemed secretly to join the twain; openly, and to the awe-struck crew, they seemed pole-like asunder.

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I'll give thee, good fellow, a twelvemonth or twain, To search Europe through, from Byzantium to Spain; But ne'er shall you find, should you search till you tire, So happy a man as the Barefooted Friar.

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If I'd known her better, I should have exclaimed, "You dear!" and I think it possible that I did say something to that effect,--perhaps "You dear woman!" At all events, the veil of self-consciousness was rent in twain at that remark, and our spirits rushed together at this touch of London nature thus unexpectedly revealed.

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