Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “forage” come from?

Forage comes from Middle English forage, from Old French fourage, blending Old French fōdar from Frankish and the suffix -age.

forage (English): Fodder for animals, especially cattle and horses;...

Definitions

  1. Fodder for animals, especially cattle and horses;...

Ancestry of “forage”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchfourrageforage, fodder
2Middle Frenchfouragefood; nourishment
3Old Frenchfourageanimal fodder; food; nourishment
4Old Frenchfuerrehay
5Frankishfōdarfodder, sheath
6Proto-Germanicfōdrąfodder; sheath
7Proto-Germanicfōdôfood, nourishment
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpat-to feed; path; to go

Words derived from “forage”

  • forager
  • foragemaster
  • forageable
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pat- →