thumb

thumb · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · inherited from*tūm-“to grow”
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*þūmô“thumb”
3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*þūmō“thumb”
4. Old English · inherited fromþūma“thumb”
5. Middle English · inherited fromthombe
6. English todaythumb

Derived from Middle English thombe, thoume, thoumbe (“thumb”), from Old English þūma (“thumb”), from Proto-West Germanic *þūmō (“thumb”), from Proto-Germanic *þūmô (“thumb”), from Proto-Indo-European *tūm- (“to grow”). Cognate with West Frisian tomme (“thumb”), Dutch duim (“thumb”), Low German Duum (“thumb”), German Daumen (“thumb”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Norwegian Nynorsk tomme (“inch”), Norn tum (“thumb”), Swedish tumme (“thumb”), tum (“inch”), Russian дюйм (djujm, “inch”), Ancient Greek τύμβος (túmbos, “burial mound”). Also compare Welsh tyfu (“to grow”), Latin tumēre (“to swell”), Lithuanian tumėti (“to thicken, clot”), Avestan 𐬀𐬨𐬏𐬙 (amūt, “strong”), Sanskrit तुम्र (túmra, “strong, thick”). The parasitic ‐b has existed since the late 13th century. Doublet of tomb.

Thumb · proper noun²

From its thumb-like shape.

Words from the same roots