# wald

> English word · Verb · IPA /wɔːld/ · frequency rank #44,013

## Definitions
1. To govern; inherit.

## Etymology
From Northern Middle English walde, from Old English wealdan (“to rule, control, determine, direct, command, govern, possess, wield, exercise, cause, bring about”), from Proto-West Germanic *waldan, from Proto-Germanic *waldaną (“to reign”), from Proto-Indo-European *waldʰ- (“to be strong, be powerful, prevail, possess”).
Cognates
Cognate with German walten (“to prevail, reign, dominate”), Danish volde (“to cause”), Icelandic valda (“to cause”), Lithuanian valda (“land property”), Lithuanian valdyti (“to rule”).

## Easily confused with
- **WD** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wd)
- **WL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wl)
- **was** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-was)
- **way** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-way)
- **war** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-war)
- **wax** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wax)
- **wan** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wan)
- **wed** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wed)
- **wat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wat)
- **WMD** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wmd)
- **WAP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wap)
- **WAV** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wav)
- **wid** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wid)
- **will** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-will)
- **want** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-want)
- **well** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-well)
- **word** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-word)
- **walk** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-walk)
- **ways** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-ways)
- **wall** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wald-vs-wall)

## Common misspellings (6)
`awld`, `wadl`, `waldd`, `walld`, `wlad`, `wwald`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/wald