Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “button” come from?

Button derives from Middle English butonen, from Old French boton, from Old French bouter, from Frankish buttan, from Proto-Germanic bautaną, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰew-.

button (English): A knob or disc that is passed through a loop or ,...

Definitions

  1. A knob or disc that is passed through a loop or ,...

Ancestry of “button”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchboutonbutton; bud; pimple, spot, zit
2Italianbottonebutton; bud
3Spanishbotónbutton; key; bud
4Old Frenchboton—
5Old Frenchbouterto strike; to hit; to place; to put; to enter
6Frankishbautanto push, strike, beat; to hit, strike; to hit,...
7Proto-West Germanicbautanto beat
8Proto-Germanicbautanąto beat, push
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰewd-to hit, strike; to beat, push; to strike, push,...
10Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰew-to grow, swell; to swell, wax, grow; to blow; to...

Words derived from “button”

  • buttons
  • unbutton
  • pushbutton
  • bellybutton
  • buttonwood
  • buttonless
  • buttonhook
  • buttony
  • buttonbush
  • buttonlike
  • buttoner
  • rebutton
  • buttonball
  • buttonmaker
  • buttonquail
  • buttonweed
  • buttonmaking
  • unbuttonable
  • buttonfront
  • bebuttoned
  • buttonmould
  • buttonwillow
  • keybutton
  • buttonologist
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰew- →