▪ I. reck, n.1 Obs. exc. poet.
(rɛk)
Forms: 6 recke, reake, Sc. rak, rack(e, 6, 8–9 reck.
[f. reck v.]
1. Care, heed, consideration, regard.
| 1568 Jacob & Esau i. ii. in Hazl. Dodsley II. 196 One that hath no recke ne care what way he walke. 1594 Carew Huarte's Exam. Wits xv. (1596) 268 The vulgar make little reake thereof. 1866 H. C. Lea tr. Audefroid-le-Batard in Superst. & Force i. (1878) 63 Your love [is] another's, and of mine, You have nor reck nor care. |
2. Sc. In phr. what reck? What matters it?
| 1535 Lyndesay Satyre 210 Quhat rak of ȝour prosperitie Gif ȝe want Sensualitie! c 1600 Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae 1359 Thoch it be cummersom, quhat reck? 1792 Burns The Tither Morn i, When I, what reck, did least expect To see my lad sae near me. |
▪ II. † reck, n.2
obs. variant of rack n.2 5 d.
| 1671 Phil. Trans. VI. 2111 A Reck..is a frame made of boards about three foot and an half broad, and six long, which turns upon two iron pegs fastened in both ends, and the whole placed upon two posts. |
▪ III. reck
obs. variant of rick, wreak n.
▪ IV. reck, v.
(rɛk)
Forms: (a) inf. α. 1 recan, recc(e)an, 2–5 recchen, (recthen), (and pres.) 3 ræcche, rechche, 4–5 retche; 2–5 reche(n, 4 reiche, reyche. β. 3–6 rekke(n, 4–7 reck(e, 4–6 rek, 6– reck, (7 wrecke); 4–6 reke, 6–7 (w)reak(e; north. and Sc. 4–6 rak(k, 7–8 rack, 9 Sc. raik. (b) pa. tense. α. 1–3 róhte, 3–5 roȝt(e, 4–6 roght(e, 4 roht; 3–5 rouht(e, rouȝt(e, rowght, 4–7 rought(e, 5 rowȝte, rough, rowth, 6 Sc. roucht; 4–6 raught(e, 5 Sc. racht. β. 5 recched, retched, -yd; 6 wreaked, Sc. rakit; 7– recked. (c) pa. pple. α. 4 roght, 5–6 rought(e, 6 wrought; 5 raught. β. 5 reckid, 6– recked.
[Comm. Teut.: OE. reccan (? récan) = OS. rôkjan (MDu. roeken), OHG. ruoh(h)en (MHG. ruochen), ON. rœ́kja (mod.Norw. dial. rökja):—OTeut. *rōkjan, the base of which does not appear in the cognate languages.
The reason of the double consonant in OE. reccan (for the normal récan) is not clear; it may have been due to association with reccan recche. In ME. there is considerable variation of form, arising from differences both in vowel and consonant; the typical forms with short vowel are recche or retche, recke and rack, contrasted with rēche or rēke, later reak. The latter is common in the 16th c., but from about 1600 the usual literary form has been reck.
The OE. pa. tense róhte gives the usual ME. pret. forms roȝt(e, rought(e, etc.; the occasional raught may be due to the influence of the pa. tense of reach. The new formations in -ed, as recched, recked, are app. not older than the 15th c.]
From its earliest appearance in Eng., reck is almost exclusively employed in negative or interrogative clauses. In the former the simple negative may be replaced by nought, nothing, little, not much, etc.; in the latter the pron. what is most usual. There are comparatively few examples of the word during the 17th and 18th c., but in the 19th it again becomes common in rhetorical and poetic language.
1. intr. Const. with of: a. To take care, heed, or thought of some thing (or person), with inclination, desire or favour towards it, interest in it, or the like; to think (much, etc.) of.
| c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xxv, Þeah heora lareowas him þonne biodan þa ilcan mettas..ðonne ne reccað hi þara metta. c 1000 ælfric Hom. I. 224 He ne rohte þæs eorðlican reafes syððan he of deaðe aras. c 1205 Lay. 17051 Ne recche ich noht his londes his seoluer ne his goldes. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1404 Þe gost..lutel rekþ of milce and ore. a 1300 Cursor M. 15776 ‘Iudas, quilum was’, he said, ‘Þat mikel o þe i roght’. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xliii. (Cecilia) 394 A murtherere..þat racht noþire of mensk na honoure. c 1440 J. Capgrave Life St. Kath. iii. 1370 Ȝe neuyr mech rowth [v.r. rought] Of no wordly..plesauns. 1481 Caxton Reynard (Arb.) 48 Ye retche not of brede of flesshe ne suche maner mete. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. July 34 Syker, thous but a laesie loord, And rekes much of thy swinck [gloss counts much of thy paynes]. 1616 R. C. Times' Whistle v. 1928 He would not wrecke Of all celestiall ioyes. 1810 Scott Lady of L. iv. xix, What from a prince can I demand, Who neither reck of state nor land? a 1845 Barham Ingol. Leg. Ser. iii. Jerry Jarvis, Little recked he of flowers—save cauliflowers. 1887 Bowen Virg. æneid v. 400 Of gifts I reck but lightly. |
b. To take heed or have a care of some thing (or person), so as to be alarmed or troubled thereby, or to modify one's conduct or purpose on that account.
| Beowulf (Z.) 434 Se æᵹlæca..wæpna ne recceð. a 900 Cynewulf Crist 1440 Fylgdon me mid firenum; fæh þe ne rohtun. c 1200 Ormin 16165 Nan mann ne þurrfte off himm Ne nimenn gom, ne rekkenn. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 4419 So gret was is herte þat of deþ he ne roȝte no þing. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xlii. (Agatha) 154 Do one as þu has thocht, for of þi panys rak I nocht. c 1450 tr. De Imitatione iii. v. 68 If trouþ e delyuere þe, þou shalt..not recche of mennes veyn wordes. 1578 T. Proctor Gorg. Gallery Gallant Inuent., Pure Consc., A Conscience pure..That..Of slaunders lothsome reketh not. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. Oct. 29 What wreaked I of wintrye ages waste. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 50 Of God, or Hell, or worse He reckd not. 1775 Sheridan Duenna iii. i, Then it was, old Father Care, Little reck'd I of thy frown. 1810 Scott Lady of L. v. xvi, He..Received, but reck'd not of a wound. 1876 Black Madcap V. v. 47 What recked she of the mad course she was pursuing. |
c. To know, be aware, or think of.
| 1813 Byron Corsair iii. v, Ah! little reck'd that chief of womanhood—Which frowns ne'er quell'd, nor menaces subdued. 1835 Lytton Rienzi iv. i, If this last, I shall have done better for my charge than I recked of. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. ii. v, Little recked Mr. Podsnap of the traps and toils besetting his Young Person. |
2. With other preps. To set store or account by; to care for; † to think or have pity on; † to be troubled or distressed at.
With by and for the sense may be either as in 1 a or 1 b.
| c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Mark xii. 14 We witon þæt..þu ne recst be æneᵹum menn. c 1275 Lay. 2789 Alle his riche eorles..nolde for þan kinges bode noþing..reche. 1423 Jas. I Kingis Q. xxvii, Was non that myght, that on my peynes rought. 1490 Caxton Eneydos v. 21 The wymmen..were to fore the sayd aulter..wythoute retchynge ought by theym selfe. 1530 Palsgr. 681/1 He is the moste neglygent folowe that ever I sawe, he recketh for nothynge. 1566 Drant Wail. Hierim. K vi b, And lende his cheeke unto the stroke, nor recke at wordes of spite. 1615 R. Brathwait Strappado (1878) 131 Ane, we raught on meanely. ? 1788 Burns Song, Louis, what reck I by thee, Or Geordie on his ocean? 1853 Kingsley Hypatia xxv, [The gods] recked nothing for the weal or woe of earth. |
3. With inf. a. To care, desire, be willing or anxious to do something.
| a 900 Laws of ælfred Introd. c. 40 in Schmid Gesetze (1858) 62 Leases monnes word ne rece þu no þæs toᵹehieranne. a 1200 Moral Ode 221 Neure in helle hi com, ne þer ne come reche. c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 1377, I recche nat,.. To haue victorie of hem, or they of me. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 6557 In þe chapiter twenty and sex he may se, to knawe wha rex. 1481 Caxton Godfrey xliii. 83 Tancre his neuew..retched not for to see Themperour ne to speke to hym. 1574 Hellowes Gueuara's Fam. Ep. (1577) 290 Such as be of good gouernment, and reck not to follow physick. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. ii. iv. 81 My master..little wreakes to finde the way to heauen By doing deeds of hospitalitie. 1873 Symonds Grk. Poets iii. 72 Old eyes forlorn Scarce reck the very sunshine to behold. |
b. To care, to be troubled, distressed, or reluctant; to feel aversion or repugnance to, etc.
| c 1300 Becket (Percy Soc.) 405 Lute hi wolde recche to loose here ordre so. a 1340 Hampole Psalter xxi. 13 Þai roght na mare to sla me þan to spill watere. 1430–40 Lydg. Bochas i. i. (1554) 3 Ye retche not by sin To slea your soule. 1485 Caxton Chas. Gt. 214 The cristen men..raught not for to deye for þe crysten fayth. 1610 Boys Expos. Ep. & Gosp. Wks. (1629) 507 Schismatikes..reake not to be condemned of the learned for ignorant; so they may be commended of the ignorant for learned. |
4. With dependent clause: To care, be troubled, concern oneself, if, that, though; how, when, where; whether; who, what, etc.
| c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xviii. §4 ᵹe ne reccað ðeah hweðer ᵹe auht to gode don. c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Mark iv. 38 Ne reces ðu þæt [Rushw. ðah] we deado sie. c 1000 ælfric Colloq. in Wr.-Wülcker 89/14 Hwæt rece we hwæt we sprecan. a 1122 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1086 Se cyng..ne rohte na hu swiðe synlice þa ᵹerefan hit beᵹeatan of earme mannon. c 1205 Lay. 18042 Ne þurfen ȝe nauere rehchen, þah ȝe slæn þa wrecchen. a 1225 Juliana 19 Cristene womman icham iwis; I ne reche ho it wite. a 1300 Cursor M. 5446 Nou rek i neuer quen i dei. c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 44 [Let friars] recke not þat [v.r. þ o] þei ben vnkunnynge to lerne letteris. a 1450 Knt. de la Tour (1868) 60 There be many women that rechin neuer what fallithe of her counsayle. 1485 Caxton Chas. Gt. 196, I retche not though he be put to dethe. 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 530/1 As though he roughte not whether they dydde good or ill. c 1570 Satir. Poems Reform. xxxvii. 69 Rek not..how raschelie ravarris raill. 1606 Shakes. Tr. & Cr. v. vi. 26, I wreake not, though thou end my life to day. 1641 Milton Animadv. i. Wks. (1851) 187 They wreck not whether you..know them or not. 1813 Scott Rokeby i. xix, Whether false the news, or true, Oswald, I reck as light as you. 1825 ― Talism. xii, Sir Kenneth little recked, that [etc.]. 1845 Hirst Com. Mammoth, etc. 15 We recked not what our fates might be. |
5. Without const. (usually ellipt. for one or other of prec. uses): To care, heed, mind, etc.
| c 1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 254 Hi habbað þurh þæt cornes swa fela swa hi mæst recceað. a 1122 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1070 Þa munecas..beaden heom grið, ac hi na rohten na þing. c 1205 Lay. 16179 To þan castle heo brohten swa muchel swa heo rohten. c 1320 Cast. Love 341 They..lyed to him therof, and lytelle rowghton. c 1386 Chaucer Nun's Pr. Prol. 48 If he wol serve thee, rekke not a bene. c 1430 Chev. Assigne 177 She rawȝte hit hym aȝeyne & seyde she ne rowȝte. 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 198/2 There were many fayr myracles whyche by neglygence..and not retchyng were not wryton. a 1548 Hall Chron., Rich. III 31 b, In faith, quod he, I neither wote ne recke, so I were once hence. a 1591 H. Smith Wks. (1867) II. 485 Who little recks, much good foregoes. 1667 Milton P.L. ix. 173 Revenge..back on itself recoiles; Let it; I reck not. 1746 W. Thompson Hymn to May xxx, Who hears them cry, ne recks. 1791 Cowper Iliad xi. 97 The eternal father reck'd not. 1813 Scott Rokeby iii. ii, I reck not. In a war to strive,..Suits ill my mood. |
6. trans. To heed, regard, care for, etc. (either as in sense 1 a or 1 b).
| c 1205 Lay. 28851 Mucchel scome heom þuhte þat wepmen heom ne rohte. 1390 Gower Conf. III. 186 The king his oghne astat ne roghte. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. viii. 182 If thei be not remembrid, thei schulen not be reckid. 1513 Douglas æneis xiii. v. 81 O haitfull deid..Quhilk gret and small doun thringis, and nane rakkis. 1591 R. Wilmot Tancred & Gismunda iv. iii, Not that she recks this life. 1602 Shakes. Ham. i. iii. 51 Himself..reaks not his owne reade. 1637 G. Daniel Genius of this Isle 631 Eagles doe not recke the Wren's weake flight. 1786 Burns Ep. Young Friend xi, May ye better reck the rede Than ever did th' Adviser! 1839 Keightley Hist. Eng. I. 102 He was so stern, that he recked not all their hatred. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus xlv. 22 Septimius..Recks not Syria, recks not any Britain. |
b. To reckon, consider, think. Now only Sc. † Also const. in.
| 1599 T. M[oufet] Silkwormes 52 Which kings themselues in highest prize do reake. 1639 G. Daniel Ecclus. xiii. 6 Doe not recke Thy selfe the wiser, to b' Associate With those who are beyond thee in Estate. 1791 J. Learmont Poems 114, I ne'er thought..[she] Coud e'er harbour a thought o' distrust Or reck her shepherd unkind. 1892 Lumsden Sheephead 91 Ye wha reck our Scottish name Fit wi' the warld's first to ally. |
† 7. refl. To trouble or concern (oneself). Obs.
| a 1250 Owl & Night. 533 Of none winters ich me recche. 13.. Guy Warw. (A.) 593 Henne forward ne reche y me Of mi liif. c 1450 Merlin 93 Of that ne recche the nothinge for to enquere. 1489 Caxton Faytes of A. i. i. 2 Retche the not what they saye. 1674 Ray N.C. Words 38 Never Rack you; i.e. Take you no thought or care. |
8. In impersonal use: To concern or trouble (one); to interest. (With various const., as in senses 1–4 above.)
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 104 Ȝif heo beoð feor, me ne reccheð. c 1290 Beket 449 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 119 Luyte heom wolde rechche to leosen heore ordre so. a 1300 Cursor M. 1834 Littel roght þam of his manance. c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 605 Cleopatra, Hym roughte nat in armys for to sterve. c 1460 Towneley Myst. i. 129 Now, therof a leke what rekys vs? a 1592 Greene George a Greene Wks. (Rtldg.) 264/1 What recks it us, though George-a-Greene be stout. 1634 Milton Comus 404 Of night, or loneliness it recks me not. 1637 ― Lycidas 122 What recks it them? What need they? 1869 Blackmore Lorna D. ii, Little it recked us and helped them less that they were our founder's citizens. |
b. absol. To matter; to be of importance or interest.
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 188 Ȝe schulen lihtlie iseon hu lutel hit reccheð. c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. (E.E.T.S.) 38 Þerfore what wenist þou þar recche [L. quid igitur referre putas] yif þou forlete hir in deynge or ellys þat she..forlete þe? 1483 Cath. Angl. 299/2 It Rakkes, refert. a 1547 Surrey æneid ii. 499 Craft, or manhod, with foes what reckes it which? a 1600 Montgomerie Misc. Poems xxviii. 44 Quhat reks then of the reid? Or of the trees what reks? a 1771 Gray Dante 17 It rekes not That I advise thee. a 1774 Fergusson On J. Hogg Wks. (1800) 156 What recks tho' ye ken mood and tense? 1825 Scott Talism. iii, ‘But what recks it’, said stout Sir Kenneth. |
Hence ˈrecking vbl. n. rare.
| 1886 R. F. Burton Arab. Nts. (abr. ed.) I. 14 [He] thanked him, saying, ‘Right is thy recking’. |