Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “-worth” come from?

-worth (English) comes from English worth, from English worthwhile, from English while, from Middle English whyle, from Old English hwīl, from Proto-West Germanic hwīlu, from Proto-Germanic hwīlō, from Proto-Indo-European kʷyeh₁- — to rest; rest, peace.

-worth (English): Denotes a quantity corresponding to the time,...

Definitions

  1. Denotes a quantity corresponding to the time,...

Ancestry of “-worth”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishworthHaving a value of; proper to be exchanged for;...
2EnglishworthwhileGood and important enough to spend time, effort,...
3EnglishwhileAn uncertain duration of time, a period of time;...
4Middle Englishwhyle—
5Old Englishhwīltime; while; while; time, while
6Proto-West Germanichwīluperiod of rest, pause; time, period of time,...
7Proto-Germanichwīlōtime, period of time, while; period of rest,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeankʷyeh₁-to rest; rest, peace

Words derived from “-worth”

  • sixpennyworth
  • twopennyworth
  • threepennyworth
  • fourpennyworth
  • daysworth
  • minutesworth
  • yearsworth
  • hoursworth
  • cupsworth
  • bottlesworth
Every word from Proto-Indo-European kʷyeh₁- →