| 1 | Middle English | sped | good fortune |
| 2 | Old English | spēd | success; luck, prosperity, success |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | spōdi | hurry, rush; success, prosperity |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | spōan | to succeed, prosper |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | spōaną | to prosper, succeed, be happy |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | spéh₁- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | speh₁- | to succeed, to prosper |