Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “fulfillment” come from?

Fulfillment derives from Middle English fulfillen, Old English fullfyllan, combining Old English full- with Proto-Germanic fullijaną, from Proto-Germanic fullaz and Proto-Indo-European pl̥h₁nós, ultimately from the root pleh₁-.

fulfillment (English): Alternative form of fulfilment

Definitions

  1. Alternative form of fulfilment

Ancestry of “fulfillment”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfulfilmentThe act of fulfilling; The state or quality of...
2Middle Englishfulfillento fulfill
3Old Englishfullfyllanto fulfill, accomplish
4Old Englishfyllanto fill; Alternative form of fiellan
5Proto-West Germanic*fullijan—
6Proto-Germanicfullijanąto fill, to make full
7Proto-Germanicfullazfull; the whole, the entire
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpl̥h₁nósfull
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpleh₁-to fill

Words derived from “fulfillment”

  • nonfulfillment
  • self-fulfillment
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pleh₁- →