Where does “doolally” come from?
doolally (English) comes from English doolally tap, from English tap, from Middle English tappe, from Middle English tappen, from Old English tæppian, from Old English -ian, from Old English -ōjan, from Proto-West Germanic -ōn — he, she.
doolally (English): Insane, mad or eccentric
Definitions
- Insane, mad or eccentric
Ancestry of “doolally”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | doolally tap | Camp fever; by extension, madness, eccentricity;... |
| 2 | English | tap | A tapering cylindrical pin or peg used to stop... |
| 3 | Middle English | tappe | A spigot or plug for a hole or spout; A hole or... |
| 4 | Middle English | tappen | To let fluids flow from a spout; To retail beer;... |
| 5 | Old English | tæppian | to tap |
| 6 | Old English | -ian | Forms verbs from nouns and adjectives |
| 7 | Old English | -ōjan | — |
| 8 | Proto-West Germanic | -ōn | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | -ōną | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 13 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |