flow

flow · noun¹

1. Proto-Indo-European*plew-
2. Proto-Indo-European*plōw-der.?
3. Proto-Indo-European*pleh₃(w)-der.?
4. Proto-Germanic*flōaną
5. Proto-West Germanic*flōan
6. Old Englishflōwan
7. Middle Englishflowen
8. Middle Englishflowe
9. English todayflow

From Middle English flowe, from the verb (see below). The psychology sense “state of focus” was coined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in 1975.

flow · verb²

1. Proto-Indo-European*plew-
2. Proto-Indo-European*plōw-der.?
3. Proto-Indo-European*pleh₃(w)-der.?
4. Proto-Germanic*flōaną
5. Proto-West Germanic*flōan
6. Old Englishflōwan
7. Middle Englishflowen
8. English todayflow

From Middle English flowen, from Old English flōwan (“to flow”), from Proto-West Germanic *flōan, from Proto-Germanic *flōaną (“to flow”), from Proto-Indo-European *plōw-, lengthened o-grade form of *plew- (“to fly, flow, run”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian flouje (“to flow”), West Frisian floeie (“to flow”), Dutch vloeien (“to flow”), Norwegian flo (“to flow”). Compare also English float. Not cognate with Latin fluō despite similarity.

flow · noun³

Uncertain. Perhaps from Old Norse flói (“a large bay, firth”), see floe. Compare Scots flow (“peat-bog, marsh”), Icelandic flói (“marshy ground”).

Words from the same roots