Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “built” come from?

Built comes from Middle English bilden, from Old English byldan, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European roots bʰel- and bʰew-.

built (English): well-built, muscular or toned; Shape; build; form...

Definitions

  1. well-built, muscular or toned; Shape; build; form...

Ancestry of “built”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbuildTo form by combining materials or parts; To...
2Middle Englishbylden—
3Old Englishbytlan—
4Old English-aEnding forming adverbs; nominative masculine...
5Proto-Germanic-ō—
6Proto-Germanic-ô-ly; Forms agent nouns, often from the zero-grade...
7Proto-Indo-European-ōDerives nouns from roots

Words derived from “built”

  • prebuilt
  • homebuilt
  • stonebuilt
  • handbuilt
  • asbuilt
  • newbuilt
  • nonbuilt
  • builtscape
  • ybuilt
  • self-built
  • well-built
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -ō →