Where does “everything” come from?
Everything derives from English every, from Middle English every, from Old English þing, from Proto-Germanic þingą, from Proto-Indo-European tenkó-, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European tenk-.
everything (English): All the things under discussion; Many or most...
Definitions
- All the things under discussion; Many or most...
Ancestry of “everything”, step by step
everything traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English thing
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | thing | That which is considered to exist as a separate... |
| 2 | Middle English | thing | thing |
| 3 | Old English | þing | event, meeting, court; matter, concern; thing,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | þing | court session, lawsuit; affair, matter; thing,... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | þingą | appointed time; date; appointment; meeting;... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | tenkó- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | tenk- | to be solid, firm; to be suitable; to succeed,... |