Where does “endgame” come from?
Endgame derives from English end and game, with end tracing through Middle English endian, Old English endian, and Proto-Germanic andijaz back to Proto-Indo-European h₂enh₁-ti-.
endgame (English): The final stage of a game of chess, when there...
Definitions
- The final stage of a game of chess, when there...
Ancestry of “endgame”, step by step
endgame traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English game
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | game | A playful or competitive activity; A video game;... |
| 2 | Middle English | game | Entertainment or an instance of it; that which is... |
| 3 | Old English | gamen | game, sport, or pastime; joy, mirth, or pleasure |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | gaman | pleasure, fun, amusement, entertainment |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | gamaną | a fellow human, associate, companion; pleasure,... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | ga- | Indicates association or togetherness; co-;... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 9 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 10 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 11 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 12 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 13 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via English End
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | End | A key that when pressed causes the cursor to go... |
| 2 | Middle English | ende | The end or finishing of a thing; the terminal... |
| 3 | Old English | ende | end, limit, border, corner |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | andi | in addition, furthermore, and |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énti | opposite; near; in front |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énts | forehead; front |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ent- | face; forehead; front |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂en- | on, onto |