Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “floodwall” come from?

floodwall (English) comes from English flood, from Middle English flod, from Old English flōd, from Proto-West Germanic flōdu, from Proto-Germanic flōduz, from Proto-Indo-European plōw-, from Proto-Indo-European plew- — to fly, flow, run.

floodwall (English): A man-made vertical barrier designed to...

Definitions

  1. A man-made vertical barrier designed to...

Ancestry of “floodwall”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfloodA overflow of water from a lake or other body of...
2Middle EnglishflodA waterbody or water in general; A flood; a...
3Old Englishflōdriver, flood
4Proto-West Germanicflōduriver; flood
5Proto-Germanicflōduzriver; flood
6Proto-Indo-Europeanplōw-to flow, swim; to pour, wash
7Proto-Indo-Europeanplew-to fly, flow, run
Every word from Proto-Indo-European plew- →