around

The story

1. Middle English · inherited fromround“circle, round”
2. Old English · inherited froma-“on, at”
3. Middle English · inherited fromaround, arounde
4. English todayaround

From Middle English around, arounde, from a- (from Old English a- (“on, at”)) + Middle English round (“circle, round”) borrowed from French, equivalent to a- + round. Cognate with Scots aroond, aroon (“around”). Displaced earlier Middle English umbe, embe (“around”) (from Old English ymbe (“around”)).

Words from the same roots