mellow

mellow · adjective, noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · inherited from*mer(w)-“to rub; to pack”
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*marwaz“soft, mellow; brittle, delicate”
3. Old English · inherited frommeru
4. Middle English · inherited frommerow
5. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*melh₂-“to crush; to grind”
6. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*melwą“ground corn; meal; flour”
7. Old English · inherited frommelo
8. Middle English · inherited frommelowe
9. English todaymellow

The adjective is derived from Late Middle English melowe, melwe (“ripe, mellow; juicy; sweet”) [and other forms]; further etymology uncertain, possibly: * from an attributive use of melow, melowe, melewe, mele (“meal from ground grain or legumes; flour; kernel of barley or lentils”) [and other forms], from Old English melo, melu (“meal (edible part of a grain or pulse); flour”), from Proto-Germanic *melwą (“ground corn; meal; flour”), from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to crush; to grind”); or * a variant of Middle English merow, merowe, meruw (“soft, tender; of a person: frail; of love: unstable, variable”) [and other forms], from Old English meru, mearu (“soft, tender; delicate, frail; callow”) [and other forms], from Proto-Germanic *marwaz (“soft, mellow; brittle, delicate”), from Proto-Indo-European *mer(w)- (“to rub; to pack”). The noun and verb are both derived from the adjective. The etymology of noun sense 3 (“close friend; lover”) is unknown, but may also be derived from the adjective. Cognates * Dutch murw (“tender”) * German mürbe (“soft, tender”) * German Low German möör (“tender”) * Old Norse mör (“tender; aching”) (Icelandic meyr (“tender”)) * Saterland Frisian muur (“tender”) * West Frisian murf (“tender”)

Mellow · proper noun²

Perhaps a variant of Mellor.

Words from the same roots