Where does “boatswain” come from?

Boatswain comes from Middle English botswain, from Old English bātsweġen, a compound of Old English bāt and sweġen, ultimately from Proto-Germanic baitaz and Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to split or separate.

boatswain (English): The officer in charge of sails, rigging,...

Definitions

  1. The officer in charge of sails, rigging,...

Ancestry of “boatswain”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishbotswain—
2Old Englishbātsweġena boatman
3Old Englishbātthat which can be bitten, food, bait; boat, ship,...
4Proto-West Germanicbaitboat, ship
5Proto-Germanicbaitazboat, ship
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰeyd-to split
7Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰey-bee

Words derived from “boatswain”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰey- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰeyd- →Every word from Proto-Germanic baitaz →