ribald

The story

1. Frankish · derived from*-wald
2. Old French · derived from-aud
3. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*werp-
4. Proto-Germanic · derived from*wrībaną“to turn, twist, writhe”
5. Frankish · derived from*rīban“to copulate, be in heat”
6. Old French · derived fromriber“to be licentious”
7. Old French · derived fromribaud
8. Middle English · inherited fromribald
9. English todayribald

From Middle English ribald, from Old French ribaud, ribauld (“rogue, scoundrel”) ( > English ribaud), from Old French riber (“to be licentious”), from Frankish *rīban (“to copulate, be in heat”, literally “to rub”), from Proto-Germanic *wrībaną (“to turn, twist, writhe”), from Proto-Indo-European *werp-, *werb- (“to turn, twist”) + Old French -aud, from Frankish *-wald. Related to Old High German rīban (“to rub”), German reiben (“to rub”), Dutch wrijven (“to rub”). Compare also Old High German hrība (“prostitute”). See also English wrap.

Words from the same roots