Where does “emptyhanded” come from?
emptyhanded (English) comes from English handed, from English Hand, from Middle English hond, from Old English hand, from Proto-West Germanic handu, from Swedish hand, from Old Swedish hand, from Old Norse hǫnd — hand.
emptyhanded (English): With nothing in one's hands; Impoverished, having...
Definitions
- With nothing in one's hands; Impoverished, having...
Ancestry of “emptyhanded”, step by step
emptyhanded traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English handed
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | handed | Having a certain kind or number of hands; Having... |
| 2 | English | Hand | The part of the forelimb below the forearm or wrist in a human, and the corresponding part in many other animals |
| 3 | Middle English | hond | hand; Alternative form of hound |
| 4 | Old English | hand | A hand |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | handu | hand |
| 6 | Swedish | hand | A hand; A hand; the set of cards held by a player |
| 7 | Old Swedish | hand | A hand; A direction; A behalf |
| 8 | Old Norse | hǫnd | hand |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | handuz | hand |
via English empty
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | empty | Devoid of content; containing nothing or nobody;... |
| 2 | Middle English | emty | empty, vacant; weak, ineffective; worthless,... |
| 3 | Old English | ēmtiġ | — |
| 4 | Old English | ǣmettiġ | vacant, empty, free, idle, unmarried |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | uz- | up, out |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | uss- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | uds- | up, out |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | úd | out, outward |