wet

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*wed-“water, wet”
2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*wētijaną“to wet, make wet”
3. Proto-West Germanic · derived from*wātijan
4. Old English · derived fromwǣtan“to wet, moisten, water”
5. Middle English · derived fromweten“to wet”
6. Middle English · inherited fromwet“wet, moistened”
7. English todaywet

From Middle English wet (“wet, moistened”), wett, wette, past participle of Middle English weten (“to wet”), from Old English wǣtan (“to wet, moisten, water”), from Proto-West Germanic *wātijan, from Proto-Germanic *wētijaną (“to wet, make wet”), from Proto-Indo-European *wed- (“water, wet”) (also the source of water). Cognate with Scots weit, wete (“to wet”), Saterland Frisian wäitje (“to wet; drench”), Icelandic væta (“to wet”). Compare also Middle English weet (“wet”), from Old English wǣt (“wet, moist, rainy”), from Proto-West Germanic *wāt, from Proto-Germanic *wētaz (“wet, moist”), related to Scots weit, weet, wat (“wet”), North Frisian wiat, weet, wäit (“wet”), Saterland Frisian wäit (“wet”), West Frisian wiet (“wet”), Middle Dutch wet (“wet, damp, watery”), Swedish and Norwegian våt (“wet”), Danish våd (“wet”), Faroese vátur (“wet”), Icelandic votur (“wet”).

Words from the same roots