Where does “ijzervreter” come from?
ijzervreter (Dutch) comes from Dutch vreter, from Dutch vreten, from Middle Dutch vrēten, from Old Dutch fretan, from Proto-Germanic *fraetan, from Proto-Germanic fraetaną, from Proto-Germanic etaną, from Proto-Indo-European h₁édti — to eat.
Ancestry of “ijzervreter”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Dutch | vreter | devourer |
| 2 | Dutch | vreten | to eat savagely, stuff; food |
| 3 | Middle Dutch | vrēten | — |
| 4 | Old Dutch | fretan | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *fraetan | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | fraetaną | to devour, eat up, consume |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | etaną | to eat |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁édti | to eat |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁ed- | to eat |