Where does “breakaway” come from?
Breakaway is a compound of break and away, with break deriving from Old English brecan, from Proto-West Germanic brekan, Proto-Germanic brekaną, and ultimately Proto-Indo-European bʰreg-, meaning to break or shatter.
breakaway (English): Having broken away from a larger unit; Capable of...
Definitions
- Having broken away from a larger unit; Capable of...
Ancestry of “breakaway”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | break | To separate into two or more pieces, to fracture... |
| 2 | Middle English | breken | to break |
| 3 | Old English | brecan | to break; to break into a place |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | brekan | to break |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | brekaną | to break |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰrēǵ- | to shine, shimmer |