ungain

1) The opposite of ‘gain’ which is dealt with separately. It had meanings such as ‘indirect, severe, awkward’ and examples in the OED date from <i>c.</i>1400.

It is interesting to find it much earlier as a place-name and by-name, possibly a reference to an inconvenient location: 1312-3 Henry de Ungayn, Bolton Priory. The priory accounts include several entries which relate to crops in ‘Ungain’ and the rent or ‘farm’ in 1377-8 was 6s 8d.

places Bolton Priory
dates 1377-1378

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Photo by Kreuzschnabel CC BY-SA 3.0