Keelest

Keelest is an archaic or dialectal form of the verb to keel, used as the second person singular present indicative in Early Modern English. The verb itself means to tilt, lurch, or cause to capsize, especially in reference to a vessel; in a broader sense it can mean to cause something to list or fall. The form keelest would appear with the subject thou, as in thou keelest, thou tiltest, or thou capsizest.

In modern standard English, keelest is not used and thou forms have largely fallen out of regular usage outside historical or literary contexts. Today, speakers would typically say you tilt, you capsize, or you keel over, depending on the sense. The noun keel, by contrast, remains common in nautical terminology, referring to the main structural beam of a ship. The phrase keel over is the modern, idiomatic expression most closely associated with the verb’s sense of sudden tipping or collapse.

Usage and context: Keelest appears primarily in older texts, poetry, or scholarly discussions of archaic language. Writers who reference nautical history may encounter the verb in its thou form, but it is not part of contemporary standard English grammar.

Etymology: The verb to keel derives from the nautical term keel, the ship’s main structural line, extended to the action of tilting or sinking. Keelest, as the second person singular form, reflects the historical verb conjugation pattern of thou with the -est ending. See also keel, keel over, and keelhaul for related nautical terms.