Guerdon
[GUR-dn]
Part of speech: noun
Origin: Old French, 15th century
1.
A reward or recompense.
Examples of Guerdon in a sentence
"As a guerdon for his excellent grades, my brother got to go to Six Flags."
"Doris Lessing received the 2007 Nobel Prize in literature as a guerdon for her body of novels exploring the human experience."
About Guerdon
“Guerdon” is a loanword from Old French, where it meant “recompense.”
Did you Know?
“Guerdon” comes directly from the French, but the French word “guerdon” bears close resemblance to “widarlōn” in Old High German and “wiþerlēan” in Old English — both meaning “reward.” Because the word “reward” also existed, “guerdon” became more frequently used in English as a literary or poetic synonym, including in the works of Chaucer, Shakespeare, and Tennyson, among others. As a result, “guerdon” is used almost exclusively as a poetic term that emphasizes the importance of the reward.
