Where does “flathead” come from?
Flathead derives from English flat and head, with head tracing through Middle English heed and Old English hēafod to Frankish flatjan, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots.
flathead (English): Any fish in the Platycephalidae family;...
Definitions
- Any fish in the Platycephalidae family;...
Ancestry of “flathead”, step by step
flathead traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English flat
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | flat | Having no variations in height; Without... |
| 2 | Scots | flet | inner part of a house |
| 3 | Middle English | flet | the floor, ground; a dwelling, habitation, house,... |
| 4 | Old English | flet | the floor, ground; a dwelling, habitation, house,... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | flatją | a level surface; level ground; the floor of a... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | flataz | flat |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | plÁt- | — |
via English head
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | head | The part of the body of an animal or human which... |
| 2 | English | -y | Added to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives... |
| 3 | Middle English | -y | Designates an adjective, in many cases formed by... |
| 4 | Old English | -iġ | -y, -ic |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -g | Forms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -gaz | -y |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ḱos | -y, -ic |