Where does “cleat” come from?

Cleat comes from Middle English clete, from Old English clǣte, from Proto-Germanic klautaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European gel-, a root meaning to ball up or clump.

cleat (English): A strip of wood or iron fastened on transversely...

Definitions

  1. A strip of wood or iron fastened on transversely...

Ancestry of “cleat”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcleteburdock; A cleat; a spike or angled strip; A ball...
2Old Englishclǣte—

Words derived from “cleat”

Every word from Old English clǣte →Every word from Middle English clete →