Where does “butterweed” come from?

butterweed (English) comes from English Butter, from English butt, from Middle English butten, from Anglo-Norman buter, from Old French boter, from Old French bouter, from Frankish bautan, from Proto-West Germanic bautan — to grow, swell; to swell, wax, grow; to blow; to...

butterweed (English): Any of various herbaceous flowering plants in the...

Definitions

  1. Any of various herbaceous flowering plants in the...

Ancestry of “butterweed”, step by step

butterweed traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Butter

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishButterA soft, fatty foodstuff made by churning the cream of milk (generally cow's milk)
2EnglishbuttThe larger or thicker end of something; the blunt...
3Middle Englishbutten
4Anglo-Normanbuterto strike, finish
5Old Frenchboterto push, butt, strike; to strike; to push; thrust
6Old Frenchbouterto strike; to hit; to place; to put; to enter
7Frankishbautanto push, strike, beat; to hit, strike; to hit,...
8Proto-West Germanicbautanto beat
9Proto-Germanicbautanąto beat, push
10Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰewd-to hit, strike; to beat, push; to strike, push,...
11Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰew-to grow, swell; to swell, wax, grow; to blow; to...

via English weed

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishweedAny plant regarded as unwanted at the place...
2Middle Englishweed
3Old Englishwēodweed
4Proto-West Germanic*weudweed (unwanted plant)
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰew-Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰewd-Every word from Proto-Germanic bautaną
butterweed — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer