mother

mother · noun¹

1. Proto-Indo-European*méh₂tēr
2. Proto-Germanic*mōdēr
3. Proto-West Germanic*mōder
4. Old Englishmōdor
5. Middle Englishmoder
6. English todaymother

From Middle English moder, from Old English mōdor, from Proto-West Germanic *mōder, from Proto-Germanic *mōdēr, from Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr. Doublet of Madeira, mata, mater, matrix, and matter. Some have proposed that the "dregs" sense is from Middle Dutch modder (“filth”), from Proto-Germanic *muþraz (“sediment”), but modder is not known in this meaning. On the other hand, words for "mother" have developed the secondary sense of "dregs" in several Romance and Germanic languages; compare Dutch moer, French mère de vinaigre, German Essigmutter, Italian madre, Medieval Latin māter, and Spanish madre.

mother · verb²

1. Middle English · inherited frommodren
2. English todaymother

From Middle English modren, from the noun (see above).

mother · noun³

Clipping of motherfucker.

mother · noun⁴

Coined from moth by analogy to mouser.

Mother · proper noun, noun⁵

See mother.

Words from the same roots