Where does “chickweed” come from?

chickweed (English) comes from English weed, from Middle English weed, from Old English wēod, from Proto-West Germanic *weud — weed (unwanted plant).

chickweed (English): Any of several small-leaved herbs of the genera...

Definitions

  1. Any of several small-leaved herbs of the genera...

Ancestry of “chickweed”, step by step

chickweed traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English weed

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishweedAny plant regarded as unwanted at the place...
2Middle Englishweed—
3Old Englishwēodweed
4Proto-West Germanic*weudweed (unwanted plant)

via English chick

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishchickA young bird; A young chicken; A young child
2Middle Englishchicke—
3Middle Englishchikenchicken", also "chick
4Old Englishċicenchicken
Every word from Proto-West Germanic *weud →Every word from Old English wēod →Every word from Middle English weed →