thigh

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European*tewk-
2. Proto-Indo-European*tewkós
3. Proto-Germanic*þeuhą
4. Proto-West Germanic*þeuh
5. Old Englishþēoh
6. Middle Englishþigh
7. English todaythigh

From Middle English thigh, thegh, thiȝ, theȝhe, þigh, þyȝh, from Old English þēoh, þīoh, from Proto-West Germanic *þeuh, from Proto-Germanic *þeuhą, from Proto-Indo-European *tewk-. See also West Frisian tsjea, Dutch dij, Middle High German diech, Icelandic þjó; also Irish tóin (“hind, rump”), Lithuanian táukas (“fat”), Russian тук (tuk, “animal fat”).

Words from the same roots

First known use, by meaning

• from 8th c. The upper leg of a human, between the hip and the knee.
• from 14th c. That part of the leg of vertebrates (or sometimes other animals) which corresponds to the human thigh in position or function; the tibia of a horse, the tarsus of a bird; the third leg-section of an insect.