Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “clayey” come from?

Clayey comes from Middle English cleyye with the suffix -y, from Middle French -ie and Latin -ium, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱley- meaning to stick or adhere.

clayey (English): Resembling or containing clay

Definitions

  1. Resembling or containing clay

Ancestry of “clayey”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcleyy—
2Middle English-yDesignates an adjective, in many cases formed by...
3Middle English-ien—
4Old English-ianForms verbs from nouns and adjectives
5Old English-ōjan—
6Proto-West Germanic-ōnCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
7Proto-Germanic-ōnąCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
8Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
9Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
10Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
11Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “clayey”

  • clayiness
  • clayeyness
  • nonclayey
Every word from Chichewa iye →