Etymology

bridle

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Today it means: The headgear with which a horse is directed and which carries a bit and reins. Full definition →

Middle English bridel ← Old English brīdel ← Proto-West Germanic *brigdil
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The story

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*brigdilaz“strap, rein”
  2. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*brigdil
  3. Old English · inherited frombrīdel
  4. Middle English · inherited frombridel
  5. English todaybridle

From Middle English bridel, from Old English brīdel, from Proto-West Germanic *brigdil, from Proto-Germanic *brigdilaz (“strap, rein”), equivalent to braid + -le.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.