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Ruth¹

(rth)

In the Bible, a Moabite widow who left home with her mother-in-law and went to Bethlehem, where she later married Boaz.

[Hebrew or Moabite Rût; see rwy in the Appendix of Semitic roots.]

Ruth²

(rth)

See Table at Bible.

[After Ruth.]

ruth

(rth)

n.
Archaic

1. Compassion or pity for another.

2. Sorrow or misery about one's own misdeeds or flaws.

[Middle English ruthe, from Old Norse hrygdh (influenced by Old English hrēow, sorrow, regret).]

Ruth, George Herman Known as "Babe." 1895-1948.

American baseball player. A pitcher for the Boston Red Sox (1914-1919) and outfielder for the New York Yankees (1920-1934), he hit 714 home runs, played in 10 World Series, and held 54 major-league records. Known as "the Sultan of Swat," he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936.

(click for a larger image)

Babe Ruth

photographed in 1927

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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