Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “cluefulness” come from?

cluefulness (English) comes from English clueful, from English clue, from English clew, from Middle English clew, from Old English clēowen, from Proto-Germanic kliuwiną, from Proto-Indo-European glew-, from Proto-Indo-European ǵel- — to swallow; swallow.

cluefulness (English): The state of being clueful, knowledgeable

Definitions

  1. The state of being clueful, knowledgeable

Ancestry of “cluefulness”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishcluefulKnowledgeable and well-informed
2EnglishclueA strand of yarn etc. as used to guide one...
3EnglishclewA roughly spherical mass or body; A ball of...
4Middle EnglishclewAlternative form of clewe
5Old Englishclēowen—
6Proto-Germanickliuwiną—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanglew-Alternative form of *gley-; to amass,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanǵel-to swallow; swallow
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵel- →