Where does “behear” come from?
behear (English) comes from English hear, from Middle High German hier, from Old High German hier, from Proto-West Germanic *hēr, from Proto-Germanic hē₂r, from Proto-Indo-European ḱe, from Middle English kyt, from German kitt — to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,...
behear (English): To give ear to; hear (intently); attend (to); pay attention or give heed to; listen to
Definitions
- To give ear to; hear (intently); attend (to); pay attention or give heed to; listen to
Ancestry of “behear”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | hear | To perceive sounds through the ear |
| 2 | Middle High German | hier | — |
| 3 | Old High German | hier | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *hēr | here |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hē₂r | here, in this place |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 7 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 8 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 9 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 10 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 11 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |