Archaic term meaning 'in two' or 'asunder,' expressing separation or division into parts.
From 'at-' + 'win' or 'tween' (two), similar to 'atwain.' These archaic forms used 'at-' as a state-describing prefix.
You can almost hear the Middle English speakers saying 'atwin' and 'atwain' interchangeably—variants like these show how spelling and pronunciation weren't standardized until printing presses forced consistency.
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