Where does “duck off” come from?

duck off (English) comes from English Duck, from Dutch doek, from Middle Dutch doec, from Old Dutch duok, from Proto-West Germanic dōk, from Proto-Germanic dōkaz, from Proto-Indo-European dwōg-.

duck off (English): To lie low; to hide

Definitions

  1. To lie low; to hide

Ancestry of “duck off”, step by step

duck off traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Duck

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishDuckTo quickly lower (the head or body), often in order to prevent it from being struck by something
2Dutchdoekcloth, linen, fabric; a piece of cloth; screen,...
3Middle Dutchdoeccloth
4Old Dutchduok—
5Proto-West Germanicdōkcloth, rag
6Proto-Germanicdōkazcloth, rag
7Proto-Indo-Europeandwōg-—

via English off

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishoffIn a direction away from the speaker or object;...
2Middle Englishofof; off; until
3Old Englishofof, from, off, out of
4Old Englishæfof
5Proto-Germanic*ab—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanapó—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dwōg- →