Wenchel
/ˈwɛn.tʃəl/noun
An obsolete or dialectal term for a young girl, child, or small person.
Did you know?Wenchel is an obsolete form related to wench, a word that originally referred broadly to a child or young person before acquiring later, more sexualized meanings.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
wencel
“A child or young person; the probable ancestral form behind later wench vocabulary.”
Middle English
ME
wenche
“A girl, young woman, or female servant.”
Middle English
ME
wenchel
“A diminutive or variant form referring to a young girl or child.”
Scots and Northern English
Scots
wenchel
“A small child or young girl, preserved in regional and dialectal usage.”
Modern English
English
wenchel
“Obsolete or dialectal; chiefly encountered in historical dictionaries and regional records.”