Etymology

water

wa·ter
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Today it means: An inorganic compound (of molecular formula H₂O) found at room temperature and pressure as a clear liquid; it is present naturally as rain, and found in rivers, lakes and seas; its solid form is ice and its gaseous form is steam. Full definition →

First used 15th c.Middle English water ← Old English wæter ← Proto-West Germanic *watar
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water · noun1

  1. Proto-Indo-European*wed-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*wódr̥
  3. Proto-Germanic*watōr
  4. Proto-West Germanic*watar
  5. Old Englishwæter
  6. Middle Englishwater
  7. English todaywater

From Middle English water, from Old English wæter (“water”), from Proto-West Germanic *watar, from Proto-Germanic *watōr (“water”), from Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥ (“water”). Cognates * Scots watter (“water”) * Yola wadher, waudher (“water”) * North Frisian waar, weeder, weeter, woar, woor, wååder, wåår (“water”) * Saterland Frisian Woater (“water”) * West Frisian wetter (“water”) * Cimbrian bassar, bazzar (“water”) * Dutch water (“water”) * Afrikaans water (“water”) * Dutch Low Saxon water, wotter (“water”) * German Wasser (“water”) * German Low German Water, Woter (“water”) * Gottscheerish boßər, bàsser (“water”) * Limburgish Waater, water (“water”) * Luxembourgish Waasser (“water”) * Mòcheno bòsser (“water”) * Vilamovian woser (“water”) * West Flemish woater (“water”) * Yiddish וואַסער (vaser, “water”) * Danish vand (“water”) * Elfdalian wattn (“water”) * Faroese vatn (“water”) * Icelandic vatn (“water”) * Norwegian Nynorsk vatn (“water”) * Norwegian Bokmål vann (“water”) * Swedish vatten (“water”) * Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐍄𐍉 (watō, “water”) * Old Irish coin fodorne (“otters”, literally “water-dogs”) * Latin unda (“wave”) * Lithuanian vanduõ (“water”) * Polish woda (“water”) * Russian вода́ (vodá, “water”) * Albanian ujë (“water”) * Ancient Greek ὕδωρ (húdōr, “water”) * Armenian գետ (get, “river”) * Sanskrit उदन् (udán, “wave, water”) * Hittite 𒉿𒀀𒋻 (wa-a-tar, “water”)

water · verb2

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*wódr̥“water”
  2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*watōr“water”
  3. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*watrōną
  4. Old English · inherited fromwæterian
  5. Middle English · inherited fromwateren
  6. English todaywater

From Middle English wateren, from Old English wæterian, from Proto-Germanic *watrōną, *watrijaną, from Proto-Germanic *watōr (“water”), from Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥ (“water”). Cognates Cognate with Scots watter (“water”), Saterland Frisian woaterje (“to water”), West Frisian wetterje (“to water”), Dutch wateren (“to water”), German Low German watern (“to water”), German wässern (“to water”), Danish vande (“to water”), Swedish vattna (“to water”), Icelandic vatna (“to water”).

Water · proper noun3

* As an English surname, from the medieval pronunciation of the name Walter. * As an English and German surname, from the noun water. * As an Irish surname, adopted as a translation from Ó Fuartháin (see Foran), mistaken for Ó Fuaruisce (“descendant of cold water”), from fuar + uisce.

Words from the same roots

Middle Englishwater all →

Waterworth

Proto-Indo-European*wódr̥ all →

AdriaticHadrian

First known use, by meaning

  • from 15th c. Urine.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.