Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “brushwood” come from?

Brushwood comes from Middle English brushwood, combining brush with wood, ultimately tracing through Old English wudu to Proto-Indo-European roots including weh₂t-, widʰu-, bʰr̥stís, weydʰ-, and bʰers-.

brushwood (English): Branches and twigs fallen from trees and shrubs;...

Definitions

  1. Branches and twigs fallen from trees and shrubs;...

Ancestry of “brushwood”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishBrush—
2Middle Englishbrusshe—
3Old Frenchbroisse—
4Vulgar Latinbrustia—
5Icelandicburstibrush
6Proto-Germanicburstizbristle
7Proto-Germanicbʰurstís—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰr̥s-tí-s—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰers-top, tip, point
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰers- →