riddle

riddle · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Germanic*rēdaną
2. Proto-West Germanic*rādan
3. Proto-West Germanic*rādislī
4. Old Englishrǣdels
5. Middle Englishredelsbf.
6. Middle Englishredel
7. English todayriddle

From Middle English redel, redels, from Old English rǣdels, rǣdelse (“counsel, opinion, imagination, riddle”), from Proto-West Germanic *rādislī (“counsel, conjecture”). Analyzable as rede (“advice”) + -le. Akin to Old English rǣdan (“to read, advise, interpret”). Cognate with Dutch raadsel, German Rätsel.

riddle · noun, verb²

1. Old Englishhriddel
2. Middle Englishriddil /ridelle
3. English todayriddle

From Middle English riddil, ridelle (“sieve”), from Old English hriddel (“sieve”), alteration of earlier hridder, hrīder, from Proto-West Germanic *hrīdrā, from Proto-Germanic *hrīdrą, *hrīdrǭ (“sieve”), from Proto-Germanic *hrid- (“to shake”), from Proto-Indo-European *krey-. Akin to German Reiter (“sieve”), Old Norse hreinn (“pure, clean”), Old High German hreini (“pure, clean”), Gothic 𐌷𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌽𐍃 (hrains, “clean, pure”). More at rinse.

riddle · noun³

1. Old High German · derived fromrīdan“to turn; wrap; twist; wrinkle”
2. Old French · derived fromridel
3. Middle English · inherited fromriddel
4. English todayriddle

From Middle English riddel, ridel, redel, rudel, from Old French ridel ("a plaited stuff; curtain"; > Medieval Latin ridellus), from rider (“to wrinkle”), from Old High German rīdan (“to turn; wrap; twist; wrinkle”). More at writhe. Doublet of rideau.

riddle · verb⁴

1. Middle English · inherited fromridlen
2. English todayriddle

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

Riddle · proper noun⁵

Named after Ryedale in Yorkshire, as well as a spelling variant of Riddell.

Words from the same roots