Etymology

winch

W4I1N1C3H4

Today it means: A machine consisting of a drum on an axle, a friction brake or ratchet and pawl, and a crank handle or prime mover (often an electric or hydraulic motor), with or without gearing, to give increased mechanical advantage when hoisting or hauling on a rope or cable. Full definition →

Middle English wynche ← Old English winċe ← Proto-Germanic *winkijǭ
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winch · noun, verb1

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*weng-“to bow, bend, arch, curve”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*winkijǭ
  3. Old English · inherited fromwinċe
  4. Middle English · inherited fromwynche
  5. English todaywinch

From Middle English wynche, from Old English winċe, from Proto-Germanic *winkijǭ, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European *weng- (“to bow, bend, arch, curve”), whence also wink.

winch · verb2

See wince.

winch · verb3

Variant form of wench.

Winch · proper noun4

  1. Old English · derived fromhlēapewince“lapwing”
  2. Old English · derived fromwinċe“winch”
  3. English todayWinch

Various origins: * A topographic surname for someone who lived at a place where boats were hauled up onto the land by means of pulleys, from Old English winċe (“winch”). * From the second part of Old English hlēapewince (“lapwing”), probably a nickname.

Words from the same roots

Proto-Indo-European*weng- all →

glancewink

Old Englishhlēapewince all →

lapwing

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.