weed

weed · noun¹

1. Proto-West Germanic*weud
2. Old Englishwēod
3. Middle Englishweed
4. English todayweed

From Middle English weed, weod, from Old English wēod (“weed”), from Proto-West Germanic *weud (“weed”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Jood (“weed”), West Frisian wjûd (“weed”), Dutch wied (“unwanted plant, weed”), German Low German Weed (“weed”), Old High German wiota (“fern”). See also woad.

weed · verb²

1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*weudōną“to uproot, weed”
2. Old English · inherited fromwēodian“to weed”
3. Middle English · inherited fromweeden
4. English todayweed

From Middle English weeden, weden, from Old English wēodian (“to weed”), from Proto-Germanic *weudōną (“to uproot, weed”). Cognate with West Frisian wjûde, wjudde (“to weed”), Dutch wieden (“to weed”), German Low German weden (“to weed”).

weed · noun³

1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*wēdiz
2. Old English · inherited fromwǣd“dress, attire, clothing, garment”
3. Middle English · inherited fromwede
4. English todayweed

From Middle English wede, from Old English wǣd (“dress, attire, clothing, garment”), from Proto-Germanic *wēdiz, from which also wad, wadmal. Cognate with Dutch lijnwaad, Dutch gewaad, German Wat.

weed · noun⁴

1. Old English · derived fromwēdan“to be mad or delirious”
2. Scots · borrowed fromweid, weed
3. English todayweed

From Scots weid, weed. The longer form weidinonfa, wytenonfa (Old Scots wedonynpha) is attested since the 1500s. Jamieson's Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language analyses the longer form as a compound meaning "onfa(ll) of a weed", whereas the Scottish National Dictionary/DSL considers the short form a derivative of the longer form, and derives its first element from Old English wēdan (“to be mad or delirious”), from wōd (“mad, enraged”).

weed · verb⁵

From the verb wee.

Words from the same roots