Where does “belch” come from?

Belch comes from Middle English belchen, from Old English bielċan, from Proto-Germanic belkaną, a verb of unknown ultimate origin.

belch (English): To expel loudly from the stomach through the...

Definitions

  1. To expel loudly from the stomach through the...

Ancestry of “belch”, step by step

belch traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English belchen

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishbelchen—
2Old Englishbielċanto burp, throw up
3Proto-West Germanic*balkijanto bellow, roar
4Proto-Germanicbelkanąto belch

via Latin Belgae

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1LatinBelgaethe Belgians; Belgians
2Proto-Celticbolg-to swell
3Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰelgʰ-to bulge, swell

Words derived from “belch”

Every word from Proto-Germanic belkaną →