Etymology

cleaner

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Today it means: A person whose occupation is to clean things, especially rooms, floors, and windows. Full definition →

Middle English clener
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cleaner · noun1

  1. Middle English · inherited fromclener
  2. English todaycleaner

Inherited from Middle English clener, clenere, equivalent to clean + -er (agent noun suffix).

cleaner · adjective2

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*klainizô“shinier, finer, more splendid”
  2. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*klainiʀō“daintier, more delicate”
  3. Old English · inherited fromclǣnra
  4. Middle English · inherited fromclener
  5. English todaycleaner

Inherited from Middle English clener, clenner, clanner, clannere, from Old English clǣnra, clǣnre (“cleaner, purer, clearer”), from Proto-West Germanic *klainiʀō (“daintier, more delicate”), from Proto-Germanic *klainizô (“shinier, finer, more splendid”), equivalent to clean + -er.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.