climb

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*gley-“to stick”
2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*klibaną
3. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*klimbaną“to climb, go up by clinging”
4. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*klimban
5. Old English · inherited fromclimban“to climb”
6. Middle English · inherited fromclimben
7. English todayclimb

From Middle English climben, clymben, from Old English climban (“to climb”), from Proto-West Germanic *klimban, from Proto-Germanic *klimbaną (“to climb, go up by clinging”), believed to be a nasalised variant of Proto-Germanic *klibaną, *klibāną (“to stick, cleave”), from Proto-Indo-European *gley- (“to stick”). Cognate with West Frisian klimme (“to climb”), Dutch klimmen (“to climb”), German klimmen (“to climb”), Old Norse klembra (“to squeeze”), Icelandic klifra (“to climb”). Related to clamber. See also clay, glue.

Words from the same roots