Medieval Translator

Type modern English and copy it back in Middle English words from Chaucer's time.

Medieval Translator

Sample below. Your text takes its place.

Direction: Modern English to Middle English

Sample Light: words a reader still follows

Thanne the knight came home: I woot a good tale, felawe.

Same text, other sets

  • Full: the old spellings too Thanne the knyght cam hom: Ich woot a good tale, felawe.8 swaps made. 3 words have no entry and stay as typed.

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This is a word list, not a language. Only whole words and phrases that have an entry change. Everything else stays exactly as you typed it.

Next step Letter it in a medieval typefaceLater English: thee and thou

All 212 Middle English words

Light: words a reader still follows 59

  • algate Middle English for anyway and In any case.
  • alwey Middle English for always.
  • axe Middle English for ask. Axen and asken stood side by side.
  • bataille Middle English for battle and fight.
  • bet Middle English for better.
  • biforn Middle English for before.
  • bord Middle English for table.
  • brid Middle English for bird, with the r and the i the other way around.
  • chambre Middle English for room and bedroom.
  • cherl Middle English for peasant and farmhand.
  • clepe Middle English for call and name.
  • contree Middle English for country and region.
  • corn Middle English for grain of any kind, long before it meant maize.
  • curteis Middle English for polite and courteous.
  • diner Middle English for dinner, which the dictionary gives as the second meal of the day.
  • drede Middle English for fear and dread.
  • eek Middle English for also and too.
  • eve Middle English for evening.
  • everich Middle English for every and each one.
  • ey Middle English for egg. The plural was eyren.
  • fain Middle English for gladly and willingly.
  • felawe Middle English for friend, buddy, companion and pal.
  • feste Middle English for feast, party and celebration.
  • flessh Middle English for flesh and meat.
Show all 212 Middle English words (188 more)

Light: words a reader still follows, continued

  • foo Middle English for enemy and foe.
  • fowel Middle English for fowl and wild bird.
  • hende Middle English for gracious.
  • hoost Middle English for host and innkeeper.
  • leche Middle English for doctor and healer.
  • lief Middle English for dear and beloved.
  • maister Middle English for master and teacher.
  • mayde Middle English for girl and maid.
  • mete Middle English for food of any kind, not only meat. Meat is flessh. Replaces "food", "meal".
  • morwe Middle English for morning.
  • natheles Middle English for nevertheless and even so.
  • noon Middle English for none and no one.
  • outher Middle English for either.
  • parfit Middle English for perfect and flawless.
  • peraventure Middle English for perhaps and maybe.
  • rede Middle English for advice and counsel.
  • siker Middle English for sure, safe and secure.
  • sithen Middle English for since and afterwards.
  • tale Middle English for story.
  • thanne Middle English for then.
  • til Middle English for until.
  • trewely Middle English for honestly and faithfully.
  • trouthe Middle English for honesty and honor.
  • tweye Middle English for two.
  • verray Middle English for true, real and genuine.
  • werre Middle English for war.
  • wight Middle English for person and creature.
  • wikked Middle English for wicked.
  • withouten Middle English for without.
  • wo Middle English for sorrow, grief and misery.
  • wode Middle English for forest and woods.
  • wood Middle English for furious or out of your mind. The forest is wode. Replaces "furious", "enraged".
  • woot Middle English for know, as in I woot.
  • yeman Middle English for servant and attendant.
  • yis Middle English for yes.

Full: the old spellings too 153

  • aboute Middle English for about and around.
  • agayn Middle English for again.
  • al Middle English for all.
  • answere Middle English for answer and reply.
  • appel Middle English for apple.
  • baner Middle English for banner and flag.
  • been Middle English for are, as in ye been.
  • bisyde Middle English for beside and next to.
  • blak Middle English for black.
  • blew Middle English for blue.
  • bothe Middle English for both.
  • brigge Middle English for bridge.
  • broun Middle English for brown.
  • cam Middle English for came.
  • castel Middle English for castle.
  • chese Middle English for cheese.
  • chirche Middle English for church.
  • citee Middle English for city.
  • daunce Middle English for dance.
  • derk Middle English for dark.
  • dide Middle English for did.
  • doghter Middle English for daughter.
  • dore Middle English for door.
  • doun Middle English for down.
  • drinken Middle English for drink.
  • drye Middle English for dry.
  • dwelle Middle English for stay and live.
  • ech Middle English for each.
  • erthe Middle English for earth and ground.
  • fader Middle English for father and dad.
  • fals Middle English for false and untrue.
  • faste Middle English for quickly and fast.
  • fayr Middle English for beautiful, pretty and lovely.
  • feeld Middle English for field.
  • flour Middle English for flower.
  • freend Middle English for close friend and dear friend.
  • frere Middle English for friar.
  • fro Middle English for from.
  • ful Middle English for very and really.
  • fynde Middle English for find.
  • fyr Middle English for fire.
  • gest Middle English for guest and visitor.
  • gras Middle English for grass.
  • greet Middle English for great, big and large.
  • grene Middle English for green.
  • hadde Middle English for had.
  • halle Middle English for hall.
  • han Middle English for have.
  • heer Middle English for here.
  • heigh Middle English for high and tall.
  • helpe Middle English for help.
  • hem Middle English for them.
  • hevene Middle English for heaven and sky.
  • hil Middle English for hill.
  • hir Middle English for their.
  • hire Middle English for her.
  • hom Middle English for home.
  • hony Middle English for honey.
  • hoot Middle English for hot.
  • hors Middle English for horse.
  • houre Middle English for hour.
  • hous Middle English for house.
  • housbonde Middle English for husband.
  • ich A Middle English form of I, beside I itself.
  • knyf Middle English for knife.
  • knyght Middle English for knight.
  • lasse Middle English for less.
  • laughe Middle English for laugh.
  • lerne Middle English for learn.
  • lese Middle English for lose.
  • lettre Middle English for letter.
  • litel Middle English for little and small.
  • loke Middle English for look.
  • lond Middle English for land.
  • maken Middle English for make.
  • marchant Middle English for merchant and trader.
  • moder Middle English for mother and mom.
  • monthe Middle English for month.
  • moost Middle English for most.
  • moot Middle English for must.
  • muchel Middle English for much and a lot.
  • nat Middle English for not.
  • neighebor Middle English for neighbor.
  • nevere Middle English for never.
  • newe Middle English for new.
  • nonne Middle English for nun.
  • oon Middle English for one.
  • oure Middle English for our.
  • pleye Middle English for play.
  • povre Middle English for poor.
  • prest Middle English for priest.
  • queene Middle English for queen.
  • renne Middle English for run.
  • riche Middle English for rich and wealthy.
  • ryde Middle English for ride.
  • scole Middle English for school.
  • scoler Middle English for pupil and schoolchild.
  • see Middle English for sea. The spelling is the same as the modern verb. Replaces "sea", "ocean".
  • seke Middle English for seek and look for.
  • sende Middle English for send.
  • seyn Middle English for say.
  • sheeld Middle English for shield.
  • shoppe Middle English for shop and store.
  • singe Middle English for sing.
  • sitte Middle English for sit.
  • slepe Middle English for sleep.
  • softe Middle English for soft and gentle.
  • som Middle English for some.
  • sone Middle English for son. Soon is soone.
  • sory Middle English for sad and sorry.
  • squier Middle English for squire.
  • stonde Middle English for stand.
  • strete Middle English for street.
  • suster Middle English for sister.
  • swerd Middle English for sword.
  • swete Middle English for sweet.
  • swich Middle English for such.
  • telle Middle English for tell.
  • theef Middle English for thief and robber.
  • ther Middle English for there.
  • thise Middle English for these.
  • thogh Middle English for though and although.
  • thre Middle English for three.
  • thurgh Middle English for through.
  • toun Middle English for town.
  • tour Middle English for tower.
  • trewe Middle English for loyal and faithful.
  • tyme Middle English for time.
  • walke Middle English for walk.
  • wayk Middle English for weak.
  • wel Middle English for well.
  • wente Middle English for went.
  • weren Middle English for were.
  • werke Middle English for work.
  • wey Middle English for way, road and path.
  • whan Middle English for when.
  • wher Middle English for where.
  • whyt Middle English for white.
  • wole Middle English for will.
  • womman Middle English for woman.
  • wyf Middle English for wife.
  • wyke Middle English for week.
  • wys Middle English for wise.
  • yaf Middle English for gave.
  • yeer Middle English for year.
  • yelow Middle English for yellow.
  • yeve Middle English for give.
  • yif Middle English for if.
  • yit Middle English for yet.
  • yong Middle English for young.
  • youre Middle English for your.
  • yow Middle English for you where it follows a verb or a small word such as to or with.
  • yvel Middle English for evil and bad.

How this list was compiled: Own table, written for this page: 59 Middle English words a modern reader can still follow and 153 old spellings of words still in use, 212 rows in all. No word list was copied. Every row was checked twice, on 2026-10-01 and again on 2026-10-02. First, against a Middle English entry at Wiktionary (en.wiktionary.org, text under CC BY-SA 4.0), the word's own or that of the headword it is a form of: a row is kept only where a definition there gives the meaning. Second, the spelling was looked for in The Canterbury Tales as edited by W. W. Skeat in 1894 (Chaucer's Works, volume 4, public domain, Project Gutenberg text 22120, https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/22120): a spelling that stands only in the edition's footnotes of manuscript readings, or not in it at all, was left out. No row is an output of this site's Old English translator. The table swaps words and knows no grammar: it is a joke voice built from real words, not a translation. Licence: own work

How it works

This medieval translator is a joke voice built from real words of Chaucer's time, about 1400, and not a translation. It swaps modern words for Middle English ones: friend becomes felawe, story becomes tale, morning becomes morwe.

Read the full guide

Light and Full

The large card is Light: 59 words a reader can still follow, such as leche for doctor and mete for food. Full adds 153 old spellings on top, from knyght and whan to hem for them. Every word, or the headword it is a form of, has a Middle English entry at Wiktionary and stands in Skeat's edition of The Canterbury Tales.

A medieval English translator, word by word

It swaps words and knows no grammar, so endings and word order stay modern. Nobody in 1400 would have said the result. Swap reads the old words back, roughly.

  • Wood means furious and wode means forest. Corn is any grain, and mete is any food.
  • You becomes yow only after a verb or a small word such as to, with or for.
  • For thee and thou, the English of Shakespeare's time, use the Old English translator.

Questions and answers

Is this a medieval speech translator that reads aloud?

No. It writes the words and does not speak them. No device voice reads Middle English, so the page has no listen button. Copy the line and say it your own way.

Is Middle English the same as Old English?

No. Old English is the earliest recorded form of the language. Middle English followed the Norman Conquest of 1066 and lasted until the late 15th century. Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales in it between 1387 and 1400.

Where do the words come from?

Each one was checked against a Middle English entry at Wiktionary, its own or its headword's, and then looked for in W. W. Skeat's edition of The Canterbury Tales. A spelling missing from either was left out, so some well-known words are not here.

Why did only some of my words change?

Only words in the table change, 212 rows in all, and the note under the result counts the rest. Plurals and past forms mostly stay modern, and words such as man, good, day and book were already spelled this way in Chaucer.

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