Etymology

stepwise

S1T1E1P3W4I1S1E1

Today it means: One (small) step or stage at a time; gradual; piecemeal Full definition →

Proto-Germanic *wīsaz ← Proto-Indo-European *weyd-s-ós ← English step
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The story

  1. Proto-Germanic*stapiz
  2. Proto-Germanic*stappōnąbf.
  3. Proto-Germanic*stapjaną
  4. Proto-West Germanic*stappjan
  5. Old Englishstæppan
  6. Middle Englishsteppen
  7. Englishstep
  8. Proto-Indo-European*weyd-
  9. Proto-Indo-European*wéydos
  10. Proto-Indo-European*weyd-s-ós
  11. Proto-Germanic*wīsaz
  12. English todaystepwise

From step + -wise.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.