Where does “afterword” come from?
Afterword comes from English after and Middle English worth, from Proto-Germanic wurdą meaning "word," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wer- meaning "to speak."
afterword (English): an epilogue; a postscript; an appendix
Definitions
- an epilogue; a postscript; an appendix
Ancestry of “afterword”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | word | The smallest unit of language that has a... |
| 2 | Middle English | word | A word; A statement; a linguistic unit said or... |
| 3 | Old English | worð | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | *word | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | wurdą | word |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | werdʰo- | word |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | werh₁- | to speak, say |