The phrase "wert expected" is an archaic form of "were expected." The "-wert" ending is the second person singular past subjunctive form of "be" in Old and Middle English. In IPA phonetic transcription, it is pronounced /wɜrt ɛksˈpɛktɪd/. This ending is rarely used in modern English, but can still be found in certain expressions or literature. It is important to understand and recognize such archaic forms in order to fully appreciate the history of the English language.
The phrase "wert expected" is a combination of two words that have distinct meanings. "Wert" is the archaic second-person singular past tense of the verb "to be," primarily used in older forms of English. "Expected" is the past participle form of the verb "to expect," which means to look forward to or anticipate something happening.
When used together, "wert expected" implies that someone or something was anticipated or looked forward to in the past. It suggests that a certain event, action, or behavior was deemed likely or projected to occur. The phrase denotes that there was a prior assumption or prediction regarding the outcome or behavior of someone or something.
For example, in a conversation, someone could say, "You wert expected to arrive earlier," implying that there was an initial expectation or anticipation for the person to arrive at an earlier time. This phrase carries a sense of disappointment or frustration that the anticipated action did not occur as planned.
However, it is crucial to mention that "wert expected" is an outdated and rarely used phrase in contemporary English. Its usage is mostly confined to historical or literary contexts, such as when studying texts from Shakespearean or Middle English eras.
The phrase "wert expected" is not a word with a distinct etymology. Instead, it is a combination of words and verb conjugation from Old English.
"Wert" is the second-person singular form of the past subjunctive of the verb "be" in Old English. It corresponds to the modern English word "were" but is specifically used with "thou", which is the second-person singular pronoun. In modern English, this form is rarely used except in certain dialects or in poetic or archaic contexts.
"Expected" is the past participle of the verb "expect", which comes from the Latin word "expectare", meaning "to look out for" or "await". In Old English, the verb "expect" was "yspecan", and over time the prefix "y-" fell out of use.