woe [OE] Many ancient languages, including Old English, Latin, and Greek, had woe or a similar word—a natural exclamation made by someone unhappy or in distress. The medieval word betide, meaning ‘to happen’, comes from the same source as *tide, and these days is mainly found in the phrase woe betide [ME], now a light-hearted warning that a person will be in trouble if they do a particular thing.