murder

murder · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European*mer-
2. Proto-Germanic*mŕ̥trom
3. Proto-Germanic*murþrą
4. Proto-West Germanic*morþr
5. Old Englishmorþor
6. Middle Englishmurthre
7. Middle Englishmurder
8. English todaymurder

From Middle English murder, murdre, mourdre, alteration of earlier murthre (“murder”) (see murther), from Old English morþor (“secret slaying, unlawful killing”) and Old English myrþra (“murder, homicide”), both from Proto-West Germanic *morþr, from Proto-Germanic *murþrą (“death, killing, murder”), from Proto-Indo-European *mr̥tro- (“killing”), from Proto-Indo-European *mer-, *mor-, *mr̥- (“to die”). Akin to Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌸𐍂 (maurþr, “murder”), Old High German mord (“murder”), Old Norse morð (“murder”), Old English myrþrian (“to murder”) and morþ. The -d- in the Middle English form may have been influenced in part by Anglo-Norman murdre, from Old French murdre, from Medieval Latin murdrum (whence the English doublet of murdrum), from Frankish *morþr, *murþr (“murder”), from the same Germanic root, though this may also have been wholly the result of internal development (compare burden, from burthen and spider, from spiþra). (crows): Attested at least since 1475.

Murder · proper noun²

English surname from the verb murder, originally given to someone who had a reputation of being a murderer or was accused of committing murder.

Words from the same roots