Where does “foxglove” come from?
Foxglove comes from Middle English fox-glove, from Old English foxes glōfa, literally "fox's glove," referring to the flower's tubular shape.
foxglove (English): "Digitalis", a genus of about 20 species of...
Definitions
- "Digitalis", a genus of about 20 species of...
Ancestry of “foxglove”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | fox-glove | — |
| 2 | Old English | foxes glōfa | foxglove |
| 3 | Old English | fox | fox |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | fuhs | fox |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fuhsaz | fox |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | púḱsos | the tailed one |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | puḱ- | tail; press together |