English word origin

Etymology of zawn

From Cornish sâwn, sawan (“chasm”). Cognate with Welsh safn (“mouth”), Breton staoñ (“palate”).

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗

noun

A deep and narrow sea-inlet in the British Isles, especially Cornwall and the south-west, cut by erosion into sea-cliffs, and with steep or vertical side-walls; a cave through which the tide flows into a cliff.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Cornish sâwn, sawan (“chasm”). Cognate with Welsh safn (“mouth”), Breton staoñ (“palate”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Derivation mentionsâwnkw
Cognate mentionsafncy · mouth
Cognate mentionstaoñbr · palate

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "kw",
        "3": "sâwn"
      },
      "expansion": "Cornish sâwn"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "cy",
        "2": "safn",
        "t": "mouth"
      },
      "expansion": "Welsh safn (“mouth”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "br",
        "2": "staoñ",
        "t": "palate"
      },
      "expansion": "Breton staoñ (“palate”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "sâwn",
      "sâwn#Cornish"
    ],
    [
      "sawan",
      "sawan#Cornish"
    ],
    [
      "safn",
      "safn#Welsh"
    ],
    [
      "staoñ",
      "staoñ#Breton"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A deep and narrow sea-inlet in the British Isles, especially Cornwall and the south-west, cut by erosion into sea-cliffs, and with steep or vertical side-walls; a cave through which the tide flows into a cliff."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Cornwall"
      ],
      "recordId": "dc8f82192fae43defa8cdefcf16bbc450cfe19fb1e8b0beee4fdf4cea3056cb6",
      "rawRecordSha256": "3be36aaa42005fd7582e09581f26efe6a570bf5346a3765c16ff38ed48304a8a",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 806492
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for zawn →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-emF3bg