The story
- Proto-Indo-European · derived from*(s)lēg-“weak, faint, limp”
- Proto-Germanic · inherited from*slakjaną
- Old Norse · derived fromslekkja
- Middle English · inherited fromslecken
- English todaysleck
From Middle English slecken, slekken, from Old Norse slekkja, sløkkva (“to extinguish, quench, slake”), from Proto-Germanic *slakjaną, *slakwijaną (“to slake”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)lēg- (“weak, faint, limp”). Cognate with Old English sleċċan, slæċċan (“to make slack or slow, delay”).
Words from the same roots
Proto-Indo-European*(s)lēg- all →
relishlanguidlanguorlask
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.