sprint

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European*(s)prend-
2. Proto-Germanic*sprintaną
3. Proto-Germanic*sprantijaną
4. Old Norse*sprenta
5. Middle Englishsprenten
6. Englishsprent
7. English todaysprint

Alteration of earlier sprent (“to leap; bound; dart”), from Northern Middle English sprenten, from Old Norse *sprenta (for later spretta), from Proto-Germanic *sprantijaną, causative of Proto-Germanic *sprintaną (“to jump up; bounce”), from Proto-Indo-European *sprend-, *sprendʰ- (“to flinch; jump”), from Proto-Indo-European *sper- (“to twitch; fidget; flinch; jump; be quick”). Cognate with Middle High German sprenzen (“to sprinkle; splash”), Swedish spritta (“to startle”), Icelandic spretta (“to spring forth; emerge; arise; develop”).

Words from the same roots