Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “come” come from?

Come descends from Middle English comen, from Old English cuman, from Proto-Indo-European gʷem-, a root meaning to go or arrive.

come (English): To move from further away to nearer to; To...

Definitions

  1. To move from further away to nearer to; To...

Ancestry of “come”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcomento come
2Old Englishcumanto come
3Proto-West Germanickwemanto come
4Proto-Germanickwemanąto come
5Proto-Indo-Europeangʷémtto step, to take a step; to arrive
6Proto-Indo-Europeangʷem-to step

Words derived from “come”

  • coming
  • outcome
  • forthcoming
  • upcoming
  • oncoming
  • comeback
  • shortcoming
  • comest
  • commeth
  • comedown
  • coaming
  • unforthcoming
  • outcoming
  • precome
  • downcome
  • downcoming
  • comeover
  • forthcomingness
  • offcome
  • forthcomingly
  • aftercome
  • offcoming
  • intercome
  • outcome delivery
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gʷem- →