sty

sty · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*stiją
2. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*stī
3. Old English · inherited fromstī
4. Middle English · inherited fromsty
5. English todaysty

From Middle English sty, from Old English stī, stiġ (“sty, pen, a wooden enclosure; hall”, chiefly in compounds), from Proto-West Germanic *stī, from Proto-Germanic *stiją. Cognate with German Stiege (“wooden crate”), dialectal German Steige (“hen-coop”), Danish sti (“sty, enclosure for swine, sheep, hens, etc.”), Swedish stia (“sty for pigs, geese, etc.”), Norwegian sti (“flock of sheep”), Icelandic stía (“a kennel”).

sty · verb, noun²

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*steygʰ-
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*stīganą
3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*stīgan
4. Old English · inherited fromstīgan“to go; ascend, mount”
5. Middle English · inherited fromstien
6. English todaysty

From Middle English stien, stiȝen, stighen, from Old English stīgan (“to go; ascend, mount”), from Proto-West Germanic *stīgan, from Proto-Germanic *stīganą, from Proto-Indo-European *steygʰ-. Cognate with Dutch stijgen, German steigen, Danish stige, Norwegian Bokmål stige, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish stiga, Old Norse stíga.

sty · noun³

1. Middle English · derived fromyë“eye”
2. Old English · derived fromstīġend“sty”
3. Middle English · derived fromstyanye
4. English todaysty

From Middle English styanye, mistaken as "sty on eye" yet composed of Old English stīġend (“sty”, literally “riser”), agent noun from stīgan (“to rise”) + Middle English yë (“eye”).

Words from the same roots

First known use, by meaning

• 9th–17th c. To ascend, rise up, climb.