Where does “cough up” come from?
cough up (English) comes from English up, from Middle English up, from Old English upp, from Proto-West Germanic *upp.
cough up (English): to expel from the lungs, throat, etc. by...
Definitions
- to expel from the lungs, throat, etc. by...
Ancestry of “cough up”, step by step
cough up traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English up
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | up | Away from the surface of the Earth or other... |
| 2 | Middle English | up | to a vertical axis |
| 3 | Old English | upp | up; upstairs |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *upp | — |
via English cough
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | cough | To push air from the lungs in a quick, noisy... |
| 2 | Middle English | coughen | to cough |
| 3 | Old English | cohhian | to cough |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | kuh- | to cough |