Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “fleabag” come from?

fleabag (English) comes from English flea, from Middle English fle, from Old English flēa, from Proto-West Germanic flauh, from Proto-Germanic flauhaz, from Proto-Indo-European plówkos, from Proto-Indo-European plúsis — flea.

fleabag (English): A bed or sleeping bag; A place of shabby lodging,...

Definitions

  1. A bed or sleeping bag; A place of shabby lodging,...

Ancestry of “fleabag”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfleaA small, wingless, parasitic insect of the order...
2Middle Englishfleflea
3Old Englishflēa—
4Proto-West Germanicflauhflea
5Proto-Germanicflauhazflea
6Proto-Indo-Europeanplówkos—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanplúsisflea
Every word from Proto-Indo-European plúsis →