Weird/difficult formulation

I’m a native speaker and even I had to go to comments. Jeez

[https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/time%20out%20of%20mind](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/time%20out%20of%20mind)

"Time out of mind" is an old-fashioned way of saying "for a very long time".

This is quite esoteric formulation. Read as: "Since time out of mind (i.e. for a long time), men have chiefly wanted to explain the phenomena of the living world by way of the 'final cause', by the teleological concept of end, of purpose or of 'design', in one of its many forms, for its moods are many; and it will be so while men have eyes to see and ears to hear with." The phrase "time out of mind" is sort of like an ablative absolute, if you know what that is. There should probably be a comma at the end of that phrase, though I'm not 100 per cent sure. But it is sort of a metaphor for basically "since the beginning of recorded history, at least". Hope this helps, if any of it didn't make sense let me know!

"Time out of mind" means "For longer than anyone knows or remembers". The sentence in full is a very, very complicated and flowery way of saying, "People are innately curious about how and why nature is the way it is."

This is a complicated sentence. You’re right in connecting the “time out of mind” with “men have been chiefly wont.” “Time out of mind” basically means “since the dawn of time”/“for a very long time.” It’s idiomatic, meaning it’s time so long that it is not within our understanding. “Wont” in this context means “inclined to” or “accustomed to.” It indicates habit or custom. It’s a quite archaic usage. The sentence is made harder by its nonstandard structure. It can be restructured more clearly like so: “Time out of mind” [For a very long time] “men have been chiefly wont” [men have been largely inclined] “to explain the phenomena of the living world” “by way of the ‘final cause.’”

For a long time (“time out of mind”) it has been customary (“wont”) to explain the happenings of life in terms of a purpose or design.

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/wont It's not common.

The use of "men" to mean humans, and the "withal" at the end, as well as the expressions that confused OP, suggest that this is 19th century or early 20th century writing. It would cause difficulty for most native speakers, and it's not a good example to study, except for a purely intellectual exercise. Writing like this, and definitely speaking like this, is unnecessary anywhere these days.

Thank you all so much! It's clear now. It comes from an old book (On Growth & Form - D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson) I'd like to read (for its ideas, not to learn English). But it might be a bit too difficult \^\^ as I am struggling on page 3 out of 300 ahah

It’s all very formal and archaic English. Time out of mind = a long time Wont = habit

It’s all very formal and archaic English. Time out of mind = a long time Wont = habit

It’s all very formal and archaic English. Time out of mind = a long time Wont = habit

"Time out of mind" is a very old and rare way of saying "since time immrmorial" or "For longer than anyone can remember." "wont" just means "is accustomed to". It is a bit old-fashioned, but not nearly as rare as the first expression. I even use it myself occasionally as one is wont to do ! (It is pronounced like "want", and has nothing to do with "won't".)

This is a terribly long-winded way to say "Since forever, humans have had an innate curiosity to learn about why nature is the way it is" \[Time out of mind it has been\] **For a very long time; since forever (the phrase is "time out of mind" -> forever)** \[by way of the 'final cause', by the teleological concept of end, of purpose or of 'design', in one of its many forms (for its moods are many)\] **innately** \[that men have been chiefly wont to explain the phenomena of the living world\] **humans have wanted to explain nature** \[and it will be so while men have eyes to see and ears to hear withal\] **and they will continue to do so as long as they have sensory organs**

This is a literary use of the word “wont” and it’s not the same thing as “won’t” with an apostrophe. It’s also pronounced more closely to “want”. The use of it and this style of phrasing is rare. Definition: Adjective, literary; (of a person) in the habit of doing something; accustomed

Oh, older is possible, but I didn't want to rule out 1910s, 1920s. I haven't read many 18th century scientific treatises, I admit - it just felt Victorian.