Where does “frostweed” come from?
frostweed (English) comes from English weed, from Middle English weed, from Old English wēod, from Proto-West Germanic *weud — weed (unwanted plant).
frostweed (English): An American species of rockrose; Verbesina...
Definitions
- An American species of rockrose; Verbesina...
Ancestry of “frostweed”, step by step
frostweed traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English weed
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | weed | Any plant regarded as unwanted at the place... |
| 2 | Middle English | weed | — |
| 3 | Old English | wēod | weed |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *weud | weed (unwanted plant) |
via English frost
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | frost | A cover of minute ice crystals on objects that... |
| 2 | Middle English | frost | Cold, freezing, or frosty weather; weather that... |
| 3 | Old English | frost | produced by metathesis |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | prustós | frost |