Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Fish” come from?

Fish derives from Middle English, from Old French fiche, from Old French ficher, from Proto-Germanic fiskōną, from Proto-Indo-European pisḱ-.

Ancestry of “Fish”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishfiscianto fish
2Proto-West Germanicfiskōnto fish, to catch fish
3Proto-Germanicfiskōnąto fish, to catch fish
4Proto-Germanic-ōnąCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
5Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
6Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
7Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
8Chichewaiyehe, she
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