wax

wax · noun, adjective, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · inherited from*woḱ-so-
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*wahsą
3. Old English · inherited fromweax
4. Middle English · inherited fromwax
5. English todaywax

From Middle English wax, from Old English weax, from Proto-Germanic *wahsą, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *woḱ-so-. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Woaks (“wax”), West Frisian waaks (“wax”), Dutch was (“wax”), German Wachs (“wax”), German Low German Wass (“wax”), Luxembourgish Wuess (“wax”), Vilamovian wāhs (“wax”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk voks (“wax”), Faroese vaks (“wax”), Icelandic, Swedish vax (“wax”); and with Lithuanian vaškas (“wax”), Proto-Slavic *voskъ (“wax”).

wax · verb²

1. Middle English · inherited fromwaxen
2. English todaywax

From Middle English waxen, from the noun (see above).

wax · verb, noun³

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*h₂weks-“to grow, increase”
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*wahsijaną“to grow”
3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*wahsan
4. Old English · inherited fromweaxan“to wax, grow, be fruitful, increase, become powerful, flourish”
5. Middle English · inherited fromwaxen
6. English todaywax

From Middle English waxen, from Old English weaxan (“to wax, grow, be fruitful, increase, become powerful, flourish”), from Proto-West Germanic *wahsan, from Proto-Germanic *wahsijaną (“to grow”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂weks- (“to grow, increase”). Cognate with Scots wax (“to grow”), West Frisian waakse (“to greaten”), Low German wassen, Dutch wassen (“to greaten”), German wachsen (“to greaten”), Danish and Norwegian vokse (“to greaten”), Swedish växa (“to greaten”), Icelandic vaxa (“to greaten”), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌷𐍃𐌾𐌰𐌽 (wahsjan, “to grow”); and with Ancient Greek ἀέξειν (aéxein), Latin auxilium. It is in its turn cognate with augeo. See eke.

wax · noun⁴

Uncertain; probably from phrases like to wax angry, wax wode, and similar (see Etymology 2, above).

Wax · proper noun⁵

* As a German and Jewish surname, variant of Wachs. * As an English surname, from the noun wax, compare Waxman.

Words from the same roots

First known use, by meaning

• from 1900 To record.