Where does “Smeargate” come from?
Smeargate (English) comes from English smear, from Middle English smeren, from Old English smerian, from Proto-West Germanic *smirwijan, from Proto-Germanic smirwijaną, from Proto-Germanic -janą, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé- — he, she.
Smeargate (English): A political scandal of 2009 in which Derek Draper and Damian McBride plotted to post false rumours on the Internet about the private lives of prominent members of the Conservative Party and their spouses
Definitions
- A political scandal of 2009 in which Derek Draper and Damian McBride plotted to post false rumours on the Internet about the private lives of prominent members of the Conservative Party and their spouses
Ancestry of “Smeargate”, step by step
Smeargate traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English smear
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | smear | To spread (a substance, especially one that colours or is dirty) across a surface by rubbing |
| 2 | Middle English | smeren | — |
| 3 | Old English | smerian | to laugh at |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *smirwijan | to smear |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | smirwijaną | to smear, anoint |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -janą | Derives denominatives from nouns and factitives... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 9 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via English gate
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | gate | A doorlike structure outside a house; Doorway,... |
| 2 | Middle English | gate | An entryway or entrance to a settlement or... |
| 3 | Old English | ġeat | gate; a gate, door |
| 4 | Old French | gaut | forest, woods, woodland |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | walþu | forest |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | walþuz | forest |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | wel- | to see |