Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “doff” come from?

Doff comes from Middle English doffen, from Old English dōn of, meaning to do off or remove.

doff (English): To remove or take off, especially of clothing; To...

Definitions

  1. To remove or take off, especially of clothing; To...

Ancestry of “doff”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishdoffentake off
2Old Englishdōn of—
3Old Englishdōnto do
4Proto-West Germanicdōnto do; to put, to place
5Proto-Germanicdōnąto do, make; to put, place
6Proto-Indo-Europeandʰéh₁tto put, to place; to do
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰeh₁-to do, put, place

Words derived from “doff”

  • doffer
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁- →