marish meaning (archaic): definition, etymology and quotations

marish

noun

UK /ˈmaɹɪʃ/

Etymology From Middle English mareys, marys, from Anglo-Norman mareis, mereis, or from Middle French mares, marest, both from Late Latin mariscus, from Proto-West Germanic *marisk (“marsh”). Doublet of marsh and morass.

Archaic, Poetic A marsh.

Thenne sir Tristram departed / and in euery place he asked & demaunded after sir Launcelot / but in no place he coude not here of hym whether he were dede or on lyue /[…]/ Soo syr Tristram rode by a forest and then̄e was he ware of a fayre toure by a mareyse on that one syde / and on that other syde a fayr medowe1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “primum”, in Le Morte Darthur, book X:
The Cherubim descended; on the ground / Gliding meteorous, as evening-mist / Risen from a river o'er the marish glides, / And gathers ground fast at the labourer's heel / Homeward returning.1674, John Milton, “Book XII”, in Paradise Lost. […], 2nd edition, London: […] S[amuel] Simmons […], →OCLC, page 333:

marish

adj

Archaic, Poetic Marshy; growing in bogs or marshes.

And the silvery marish flowers that throng / The desolate creeks and pools among,1830, Alfred Tennyson, “The Dying Swan”, in Poems, Chiefly Lyrical:
after the manner of Cards or Maps, the utmost limits of knowne Countries, are set downe to be full of thicke marrish grounds, shady forrests, desart and uncouth places.1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 12, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC:

1 more example

At the first outset, heavy, miry ground and a matted, marish vegetation greatly delayed our progress; […]1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC:

Synonyms: boggy, quaggy, swampy
Derived terms: marishness