fog

fog · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*pug-“billow, bulge, drift”
2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*feukaną“to whisk, blow”
3. Danish · borrowed fromfog“spray, shower, drift, storm”
4. North Germanic · derived from
5. English todayfog

Origin uncertain; but probably of North Germanic origin. Probably either a back-formation from foggy (“covered with tall grass; thick, marshy”), from the earlier-attested fog (“tall grass”) (see below), or from or related to Danish fog (“spray, shower, drift, storm”), related to Icelandic fok (“spray, any light thing tossed by the wind, snowdrift”), Icelandic fjúka (“to blow, drive”), from Proto-Germanic *feukaną (“to whisk, blow”), from Proto-Indo-European *pug- (“billow, bulge, drift”), from *pew-, *pow- (“to blow, drift, billow”), in which case related to German fauchen (“to hiss, spit, spray”).

fog · noun, verb²

1. Middle English · inherited fromfogge“tall grass”
2. English todayfog

From Middle English fogge (“tall grass”), probably from Norwegian fogg (“tall, worthless grass”); compare Scots fog (“moss; lichen”).

fog · verb³

Compare Old Dutch focker.

Words from the same roots