Dame Duck's Lessons to her Ducklings

[klausnick]

Dame Duck's Lessons to her Ducklings ...

Old Mother Duck[НВ1] has hatched[НВ2] a brood[НВ3]

Of ducklings, small and callow[НВ5] :

Their little wings[НВ7] are short, their down[НВ8]

Is mottled[НВ10] grey and yellow.

[НВ1] Origin of DUCK

Middle English duk, doke, from Old English dūce

First Known Use: before 12th century

[НВ2]}Origin of HATCH

Middle English hacchen; akin to Middle High German heckento mate

First Known Use: 13th century

[НВ3Origin of BROOD

Middle English, from Old English brōd; akin to Middle High German bruot brood and perhaps to Old English beormayeast - more at barm

First Known Use: before 12th century

[НВ5]Origin of CALLOW

Middle English calu bald, from Old English; akin to Old High German kalo bald, Old Church Slavic golŭ bare

First Known Use: 1580
Etymology[edit]

From Middle English calwe (“bald”), from Old English calu (“callow, bare, bald”), from Proto-Germanic *kalwaz (“bare, naked, bald”), from Proto-Indo-European*gAlw- (“naked, bald”). Cognate with West Frisian keal (“bald”), Dutch kaal (“bald”), German kahl (“bald”), Russian голый (gólyj, “nude”).

{C}[НВ7]{C}Origin of WING

Middle English winge, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Dan & Swedish vinge wing; akin to Sanskrit vāti it blows - more atwind

First Known Use: 13th century

[НВ8]Origin of DOWN

Middle English doun, from Old Norse dūnn

First Known Use: 14th century

[НВ10]Origin of MOTTLE

probably back-formation from motley

First Known Use: 1676