Where does “elsewhat” come from?
elsewhat (English) comes from English what, from Middle English what, from Old English hwæt, from Old English -ing, from Old English -tūn, from Old English tūn, from Proto-West Germanic tūn, from Proto-Germanic tūną — smoke; mist, haze.
elsewhat (English): Something else; anything else
Definitions
- Something else; anything else
Ancestry of “elsewhat”, step by step
elsewhat traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English what
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | what | Which thing, event, circumstance, etc.: used... |
| 2 | Middle English | what | what |
| 3 | Old English | hwæt | what; why; how many or how much |
| 4 | Old English | -ing | Forming nouns from verbs, indicating action,... |
| 5 | Old English | -tūn | homestead, village, town |
| 6 | Old English | tūn | enclosure, yard; place; dwelling |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | tūn | fence |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | tūną | fence; enclosure |
| 9 | Gaulish | dunum | fort; hill, hillfort |
| 10 | Proto-Celtic | dūnom | stronghold, rampart |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |
via English else
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | else | Other; in addition to previously mentioned items;... |
| 2 | Middle English | ells | — |
| 3 | Old English | elles | other, else; other, otherwise, different |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | alljas | else, otherwise, besides |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | aljas | of another, of something else |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂élyos | other, another |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂él- | to grow, nourish |