Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “crowd” come from?

Crowd comes from Middle English crouden, from Old English crūdan meaning to push or press, from Proto-Germanic krūdaną, from Proto-Indo-European grewt-.

crowd (English): To press forward; to advance by pushing; To press...

Definitions

  1. To press forward; to advance by pushing; To press...

Ancestry of “crowd”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishcroudenTo move a means or form of transport; To cram; to...
2Old Englishcrūdanto press
3Proto-West Germanickrūdanto press, to push
4Proto-Germanickrūdanąto crowd; to press; to drive
5Proto-Indo-Europeangrewt-to push; press

Words derived from “crowd”

  • crowding
  • overcrowd
  • crowdsourcing
  • crwth
  • crowder
  • crowdy
  • crowdpleaser
  • crowdeth
  • crowdlike
  • crowdest
  • crowdworker
  • crowdsourcer
  • anticrowd
  • crowdsale
  • flashcrowd
  • crowd-puller
  • crowdfunder
  • crowdfund
  • crowdfunding
  • crowdsource
  • crowdlending
  • crowdsensing
  • anticrowding
  • crowdwork
Every word from Proto-Indo-European grewt- →