gas

noun. hole, gap

gas

noun. hole, gap

gast

proper name. Void

A name for the Void beyond the world appearing in The Etymologies from the 1930s, more fully Belegast (Ety/KUM).

gasdil

noun. stopgap

gasdil

noun. "stopgap", name of a diacritic sign used to indicate that g had been lenited to zero

belegast

place name. Void

Noldorin term for the “Void” appearing in The Etymologies from the 1930s, a combination of beleg “great” and Gast “void” (Ety/KUM), also appearing as a variant Belego containing gaw “void” (Ety/GAS).

gaw

noun. void

criss

noun. cleft, cut, slash

cîl

noun. cleft, pass between hills, gorge

dath

noun. hole, pit, steep fall, abyss

gaw

noun. void

harna-

verb. to wound

harw

noun. wound

A noun appearing as N. harw “wound” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶skarwē under the root ᴹ√SKAR “tear, rend” (Ety/SKAR).

Conceptual Development: The word ᴱN. harw “wound” also appeared in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s, likewise derived from primitive ᴱ✶skar-wé (PE13/147).

Neo-Sindarin: Many Neo-Sindarin writers adapt this word as ᴺS. haru to better fit Sindarin orthography, as suggested in HSD (HSD).

harw

noun. wound

rhista-

verb. to cut

A verb appearing in its Noldorin-style infinitive form N. rhisto in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a cognate to ᴹQ. rista- “cut”, both derived from the root ᴹ√RIS (Ety/RIS). In the initial version of this root’s entry it appeared as risto derived from ON. rista- “rend, rip” (Ety/RIS). The original entry was not deleted, and it is not clear if its retention was an oversight or if Tolkien intended both meanings to coexist.

Neo-Sindarin: In Noldorin, an initial r unvoiced to rh, but this was not the case in Sindarin, so its Sindarin form is probably ᴺS. rista-, as suggested in HSD (HSD). I would further assume rista- can mean any of “cut, rend, rip”.

ters

noun. (fine pierced) hole

tess

noun. (fine pierced) hole

thanc

adjective. cleft, split, forked

torech

noun. hole, excavation, lair

gas

root. *warmth

as

root. warmth

A root appearing in several sets of etymological notes from 1957 glossed “warmth” and forming the basis for Q. árë “sunlight, warmth” (PE17/148). This is further supported by the archaic form †ázë for this word (LotR/1123), with intervocalic [s] > [z] > [r] as usual. The form Âs was also mentioned as an ancient name for the Sun in some Silmarillion notes (MR/380). At one point Tolkien connected this root to S. Asfaloth which he translated as “Sunlit Foam” (PE17/18); he then rejected this derivation saying the root form was actually √GAS, but since the ancient form was given as √AS in several other places, perhaps he changed his mind.

snag

root. wound, gash

A root appearing in the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s, first as √(S)NAG “wound” (PE19/92 note #110) and then as √SNAG “wound, gash” in red-ink revisions made in 1959, ultimately having derivatives like Q. nahte/S. naedh “wounding, wound” (P19/91). It might be a later iteration of ᴱ√SṆKṆ “rend, tear” from Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivative ᴱQ. sanka “rend, jab” (QL/85). This early root was apparently confused with ᴱ√ÞṆKṆ “✱hate”; see that entry for discussion.

yag

root. gap, gap; [ᴹ√] yawn, gape

This root appeared as ᴹ√YAG “yawn, gape” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like ᴹQ. yáwe/N. iau “ravine, cleft, gulf” and N. ia “gulf”, the last of these the final element in N. Moria (Ety/YAG). The root √YAG was mentioned several times in Tolkien’s later writings, usually in connection to S. Moria (Let/383; PE17/35, 42). In one place it was given the gloss “gap” (PE17/42).

kirissi

noun. cleft

ekka

noun. hole

gass

gap

(i ’ass, construct gas) (hole), pl. gais (i ngais = i ñais)

gass

hole

(i ’ass, construct gas) (gap), pl. gais (i ngais = i ñais)

gasdil

stopgap

_(in writing, a sign indicating where G had been lenited to zero, represented by _ in transcription) gasdil (i **asdil), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ngasdil = i ñasdil), coll. pl. gasdiliath**

gasdil

stopgap

(i ’asdil), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ngasdil = i ñasdil), coll. pl. gasdiliath

gast

void

(i ’Ast if the word can occur with article and is not counted as a proper name)

anfauglith

place name. Gasping Dust

The name of the plain of Ard-galen after it was devastated by the fires of Morgoth, translated “Gasping Dust” (S/150). The name includes of faug “thirsty” and lith “dust” (SA/faug, lith). Its initial element may be an intensive prefix, the equivalent of Q. an-, with “gasping” an intensive form of “thirsty”.

Conceptual Development: In the earliest Silmarillion drafts, the site of the Battle of Unnumbered Tears was named ᴱN. Niniach (SM/4), but later in the 1930s Tolkien revised the name to N. Fauglith (LR/289). In The Etymologies, this name was translated as “Thirsty Sand” but otherwise had essentially the same derivation as given above, missing only the intensive prefix (Ety/LIT, PHAU).

criss

noun. cleft, cleft, [N.] cut, slash, [G.] gash; [N.] pass, [G.] gully, ravine

A word for a “cleft, cut, slash” (PE21/81; Ety/KIRIS) derived from √KIRIS, a blend of the roots √KIR and √RIS (PE17/87).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to G. criss “cleft, gash, gully” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s where it was probably already a derivative of the early root ᴱ√KIRISI as suggested by Christopher Tolkien (GL/27; LT2A/Cris Ilbranteloth). In the Name-list to The Fall of Gondolin Tolkien gave cris with the definition “a cleft, ravine, or narrow way of waters with high walls” (PE15/21), and in this period it typically appeared in this shorter form within names like G. Cris Ilbranteloth or G. Cris Thorn.

N. criss appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “cleft, cut, slash” under the root ᴹ√KIRIS “cut” (Ety/KIRIS). It also appeared under the root ᴹ√KIR with the gloss “cleft, pass”, but this instance was deleted (EtyAC/KIR). S. criss “cleft” was mentioned in passing in Common Eldarin: Noun Structure (EVS2) from the early 1950s as derived from primitive ✶kirissi (PE21/80-81), and it was mentioned as a blending of roots in notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s as described above (PE17/87). Its use in names diminished over time, however, the only remnant in the final version of The Silmarillion being S. Crissaegrim (S/121).

Neo-Sindarin: In The Etymologies of the 1930s it seems this word was principally used as for a “cleft, cut, slash” independent of geography. I would assume the same is true for purposes of Neo-Sindarin, since criss is used only in a single geographic name in Tolkien’s later writings; S. cirith was use more broadly in geographic features. I would also assume it was a larger and more violent cut (a “gash” or “slash”) compared to S. rest for simple cuts.

faug

gasping

faug (thirsty, choking), pl. foeg

faug

gasping

(thirsty, choking), pl. foeg

dîn

gap

1) dîn (i dhîn) (opening, mountain pass), no distinct pl. form except with article (i nîn); coll. pl. díniath. Note: a homophone means ”silence”. 2) gass (i **ass, construct gas) (hole), pl. gais (i ngais** = i ñais)

dîn

gap

(i dhîn) (opening,  mountain pass), no distinct pl. form except with article (i nîn); coll. pl. díniath. Note: a homophone means ”silence”.

dath

hole

1) dath (i dhath) (pit, steep fall, abyss), pl. daith (i naith) (VT45:8), 2) gass (i **ass, construct gas) (gap), pl. gais (i ngais** = i ñais), 3)

Anfauglith

Anfauglith

Anfauglith means "By Gasping Dust" in Sindarin (from an- = "with, by", faug = "thirsty, gasping", and lith = "ash, sand, dust"). Another name was Dor-nu-Fauglith translated as "Land under Choking Ash"

gaw

void

(noun) 1) gaw (i **aw), pl. goe (i ngoe = i ñoe), 2) (noun, "the Void" beyond the world) Gast (i **Ast if the word can occur with article and is not counted as a proper name), 3) iâ (chasm, gulf, abyss), pl. iai (LR:400, RS:437, Letters:383)

Anfauglith

noun. great-thirsty-ash

and (“great”) + faug (“thirst“) + lith (“ash, sand, dust”).

cirith

noun. cleft, high climbing pass, narrow passage cut through earth or rock, ravine, defile

falch

noun. deep cleft, ravine

haru

noun. wound

riss

adjective. cleft

_ adj. _cleft, cloven, separate. Q. rista, risse, rinse. >> Imladris

thanc

adjective. cleft, split, forked

cirith

cleft

(i girith, o chirith) (cutting, pass), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chirith)

cofn

void

(adjective) cofn (empty), lenited gofn, pl. cyfn

cofn

void

(empty), lenited gofn, pl. cyfn

criss

cleft

(i griss, o chriss, construct cris) (cut, slash), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chriss), 4) iaw (gulf, ravine), pl. ioe. Note: a homophone means ”corn”

criss

slash

criss (i griss, o chriss, construct cris) (cut, cleft), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chriss)

criss

slash

(i griss, o chriss, construct cris) (cut, cleft), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chriss)

cîl

cleft

(i gîl, o chîl) (pass between hills, gorge), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chîl), coll. pl. cíliath. A homophone means ”renewal”.

dath

hole

(i dhath) (pit, steep fall, abyss), pl. daith (i naith) (VT45:8)

falch

cleft

(ravine[?]), pl. felch

gaw

void

(i ’aw), pl. goe (i ngoe = i ñoe)

harna

wound

(i charna, i charnar)

harna

wound

(verb) harna- (i charna, i charnar)

haru

noun. wound

haru

wound

(i charu, o charu), analogical pl. hery (i chery). Cited in archaic form harw; hence probably harwath as the coll. pl.

haru

wound

(noun) *haru (i charu, o charu), analogical pl. hery (i chery). Cited in archaic form harw; hence probably harwath as the coll. pl.

iâ

void

(chasm, gulf, abyss), pl. iai (LR:400, RS:437, Letters:383)

rest

cleft

(ravine, cut), pl. rist (idh rist)

rist

cleft

(noun) 1) rist (-ris), no distinct pl. except with article (idh rist). Note: a homophone means ”cleaver, cutter”, 2) cirith (i girith, o chirith) (cutting, pass), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chirith), 3) cîl (i gîl, o chîl) (pass between hills, gorge), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chîl), coll. pl. cíliath. A homophone means ”renewal”. 4) criss (i griss, o chriss, construct cris) (cut, slash), no distinct pl. form except with article (i chriss), 4) iaw (gulf, ravine), pl. ioe. Note: a homophone means ”corn”, 5) rest (ravine, cut), pl. rist (idh rist), 6) (deep cleft) falch (ravine[?]), pl. felch

rist

cleft

(-ris), no distinct pl. except with article (idh rist). Note: a homophone means ”cleaver, cutter”

tess

fine pierced hole

(i dess, construct tes), pl. tiss (i thiss). Archaic ters *(VT46:18)*****

thanc

cleft

(adj.) thanc (forked, split), pl. thainc

thanc

cleft

(forked, split), pl. thainc

torech

hole

torech (i dorech, o thorech) (lair, excavation), pl. terich (i therich) for archaic törich.

torech

hole

(i dorech, o thorech) (lair, excavation), pl. terich (i therich) for archaic törich.

cirissë

slash, gash

cirissë ("k")noun "slash, gash" (KIRIS; the glosses "cleft" and maybe ?"crevasse" occurred in deleted material, VT45:23)

hyatsë

cleft, gash

hyatsë noun "cleft, gash" (SYAD), apparently changed by Tolkien from hyassë (VT46:16)

vissë

noun. gas

A neologism for “gas” coined by Arael posted on 2025-03-10 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), derived from ᴹ√WIS “air”.

ondomillo

noun. petrol, petroleum, gasoline, gas

A neologism for “petrol, petroleum, gasoline, gas” coined by Röandil posted on 2021-07-13 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS) as a combination of ondo “stone” and [ᴱQ.] millo “oil”. It has a shorter variant ondomil.

assa

hole, perforation, opening, mouth

assa "hole, perforation, opening, mouth" (GAS)

hlixë

noun. slug, snail, gastropod

A neologism for a general term for slugs and snails (e.g. gastropods) coined by Valerie posted on 2024-11-08 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), derived from ᴹ√SLIK “creep”.

cir-

verb. to cut, to cut, [ᴱQ.] cleave; *to separate from

A verb for “to cut, cleave”. Its root √KIR is well established and has the same basic meaning (PE17/73; Ety/KIR). In notes for drafts of the Earendel (Poem) from around 1930, ᴱQ. kiri- was glossed “cleave” (PE16/100), and its past form was used in this sense in the finished version of the poem as part of the phrase langon veakiryo kírier “the throat of the sea-ship clove [the waters]” (MC/216). The best evidence for its meaning “cut” in later notes is in the pair of prefixed verbs aucir- and hócir- “cut off” in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 (WJ/365, 368).

This verb also appeared in the versions of the Markirya poem from the 1960s in the phrase métima hrestallo círa “leave the last shore” (MC/221). Helge Fauskanger suggested that in this context it might mean “sail” as in “✱cut through the water” (AL/Markirya, QQ/círa). However, I think the intended meaning is actually “leave = cleave (from)”, in combination with ablative hrestallo “[from] the last shore”.

Neo-Quenya: Based on the above, I think cir- has the connotation of “cut [completely]”, so as to cleave apart the thing cut, as opposed to rista- “cut [into]”. As such I think cir- can also be used metaphorically to mean “✱separate from” when combined with the ablative.

ciris

cleft, crack

ciris _("k")_noun "cleft, crack" (LT2:337 - obsoleted by cirissë?)

ecca

hole

ecca ("k")noun "hole", apparently associated with Sindarin torech "secret hole, lair" (PE17:188)

falqua

cleft, mountain pass, ravine

falqua ("q") noun "cleft, mountain pass, ravine" (LT2:341)

fásë

gap, gulf

fásë noun "gap, gulf" (GL:36)

harna-

to wound

harna- (2) vb. "to wound" (SKAR)

harwë

wound

harwë (1) noun "wound" (SKAR)

latta

hole, pit

latta (1) noun "hole, pit" (DAT/DANT, VT45:8)

lusta

void, empty

lusta adj. "void, empty" (LUS)

sanca

cleft, split

sanca (þ) ("k") noun? (or adj, or both?) "cleft, split" (STAK)

unquë

hole, hollow

unquë noun "hole, hollow" (VT46:20, UNUK), also name of tengwa #16 _(Appendix E; there spelt unque, while the Etymologies has unqe)_