Etymology

undersheriff

U1N1D2E1R1S1H4E1R1I1F4F4

Today it means: In certain jurisdictions, a deputy sheriff; second in command to a sheriff. Full definition →

English sheriff ← Middle English shirreve ← Old English sċīrġerēfa
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₁entér
  3. Proto-Indo-European*h₂én
  4. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-?
  5. Proto-Indo-European*(H)n̥dʰí
  6. Proto-Indo-European*(H)n̥dʰér
  7. Proto-Germanic*under
  8. Proto-West Germanic*undar
  9. Old Englishunder-
  10. Middle Englishunder-
  11. Englishunder-
  12. Proto-West Germanic*skīru
  13. Old Englishsċīr
  14. Old Englishġerēfa
  15. Old Englishsċīrġerēfa
  16. Middle Englishshirreve
  17. Englishsheriff
  18. English todayundersheriff

From under- + sheriff.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.