noun
or wer·geld also were·gild ˈwərˌgild, ˈwe(ə)r-, ˈwi(ə)r-
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Middle Dutch weergelt, Old High German wergelt wergild; all from a prehistoric West Germanic compound whose constituents are represented by Old English wer man and Old English gild, geld payment — more at virile , geld (tax)
: the value set in Anglo-Saxon and Germanic law upon the life of a man in accordance with a fixed scale increasing from the churl to the king and paid as compensation to the kindred or lord of a slain person or as a fine for some serious crime — compare blood feud , bloodwite , eric