Where does “cunning” come from?
Cunning comes from Middle English cunning, from Old English cunning and cunnan, from Proto-Germanic kannijaną, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵen-.
cunning (English): Sly; crafty; clever in surreptitious behaviour;...
Definitions
- Sly; crafty; clever in surreptitious behaviour;...
Ancestry of “cunning”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | cunning | — |
| 2 | Middle English | cunninde | — |
| 3 | Old English | cunnende | — |
| 4 | Old English | cunnan | to know, to be familiar with; can, to know how |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | kunnan | to recognise; to know how, to be able |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | kunnaną | to know, to be familiar with, to recognise; to... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵneh₃- | to know |