wield

Etymology

From Middle English wēlden, which combines forms from two closely related verbs: Old English wealdan (“to control, rule”) (strong class 7) and Old English wieldan (“to control, subdue”) (weak). Both verbs ultimately derive from Proto-West Germanic *waldan, from Proto-Germanic *waldaną (“to rule”) The reason for the merger was that in Middle English the -d in the stem made it hard to distinguish between strong and weak forms in the past tense.

verb

1. (obsolete) To command, rule over; to possess or own.
2. (obsolete) To control, to guide or manage.
3. (obsolete) To carry out, to bring about.
   All is weill done, God wate, weild he hys will. a. 1513, Virgil, “VIII, prologue”, in Gawin Douglas [i.e., Gavin Douglas], transl., edited by [George Dundas], The Æneid of Virgil: Translated into Scottish Verse (Bannatyne Club, Publications; 64, no. 1), volume I, Edinburgh: T. Constable, printer, published 1839, →OCLC, line 1, page 448
4. To handle with skill and ease, especially a weapon or tool.
5. To exercise (authority or influence) effectively.