28 Mary Crawford 
the Mother of God, 140: And of my soule wasshe away the 
sore! Amen! 
Ay, ey, [eh]. Meaning yes. For form [eh] see section I, above. 
Nativity, Herod: Eh! and that kerne of Bethlehem, he shall 
be dead. \Nativity, Nuntius: Eh, sir, so they showed me. 
Nativity, Miles: Eh! brother, such tales may we not tell. 
Nativity, Prophet: Eh! trust it well. Mankind, 124: Ey, ey! 
yowur body ys full of Englysch Laten. York Mystery Plays, 
v, 71: Ay! goddis shalle ye be! 
certes, sertis, certeynlye. Equivalent to im truth, truly. From 
OF. certes, or @ certes, according to Littré. ‘Latin a certis, 
meaning from certain (grounds), certainly. 
York Plays, i, 81, Lucifer: Owe! certes! what I am worthely 
wroghte with wyrschip, i-wys! Morte Darthur, xiv, ch. 1: 
Certes fayre neuew sayd she, your moder is dede. Morte 
Darthur, xvii, ch. xi: Certes, sayd Galahad, and ye blede soo 
moche ye maye dye. Castell of Perseverance, 296: Certis, I 
haue no more. Castell of Pers., 339: & sertis thou schalt not 
wante! Towneley Plays, x, 299: Certys, I forthynk sore of hir. 
dede. 
in faythe, mafa(y). Cf. Fr. foi, ma foi. Compare modern 
Irish dialect, faith! In the next century we find Jlewtie 
(loyalty) used iim the same way as fay in the fifteenth. 
Magnyfycence, 663: In fayth, and Lybertyes rome is there 
but small. Magn., 809: Nay, in good faythe; it is but the 
gyse. Magn., 292: In fayth, Broder Largesse, you haue a mery 
mynde. Magn., 2266: Ye, in faythe; or ellys thou arte to great 
a glotton. Towneley Plays, iv, 39: Ma fa! sone I hope he 
shall. Towneley, xxiii, 564: Ma-fay, I tell his lyfe is lorne. 
Towneley, xxiv, 245, Pilate: That appentys unto me, mafa! 
art thou mad? Merlin, 796: Now, mafey, thanne this goth 
amys! 
forsothe, for suth. The modern use of this word is to express 
contempt. In ME. it kept its original value of in truth. It 
unites the preposition for and the noun soth, truth. Modern 
forsooth. 
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