Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “crowbait” come from?

crowbait (English) comes from English Crow, from Middle English crowe, from Middle English crowen, from Old English crāwe, from Proto-West Germanic krāā, from Proto-Germanic krēǭ, from Proto-Indo-European ger- — to turn, bend, twist, wind; to tie, bind...

crowbait (English): An old, emaciated horse

Definitions

  1. An old, emaciated horse

Ancestry of “crowbait”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishCrowA member of a Native American tribe of southern...
2Middle Englishcrowecrow; A metal bar or lever; a crowbar;...
3Middle EnglishcrowenTo crow; To make other noises typical of birds;...
4Old Englishcrāwe—
5Proto-West Germanickrāācrow
6Proto-Germanickrēǭcrow
7Proto-Indo-Europeanger-to turn, bend, twist, wind; to tie, bind...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ger- →