Where does “dismaying” come from?
Dismaying comes from Middle English dismayen, from Anglo-Norman desmaiier, from Old French esmaier, ultimately from Latin ex- combined with mago, meaning to deprive of power or strength.
dismaying (English): present participle of dismay
Definitions
- present participle of dismay
Ancestry of “dismaying”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | dismay | To cause to feel apprehension; great sadness, or... |
| 2 | Middle English | dismayen | — |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | desmaiier | — |
| 4 | Old French | esmaier | to be frightened; to be scared; to frighten; to... |
| 5 | Vulgar Latin | exmagare | to deprive of strength, to disable; deprive of... |
| 6 | Latin | magare | to enable; empower; to enable, empower |
| 7 | Frankish | magan | to be able, may |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | maganą | to be able, may |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | (me)mógʰe | to have power, to be able to |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | megʰ- | to be able |