Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “full” come from?

Full comes from Middle English fullen, from Latin fullo meaning cloth-fuller, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰel- meaning to swell or blow.

full (English): Containing the maximum possible amount that can...

Definitions

  1. Containing the maximum possible amount that can...

Ancestry of “full”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishfúl—
2Old Englishfullfull, filled, complete, entire; a beaker; a cup,...
3Proto-West Germanicfullfull
4Proto-Germanicfullazfull; the whole, the entire
5Proto-Indo-Europeanpl̥h₁nósfull
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpleh₁-to fill

Words derived from “full”

  • fuller
  • fullback
  • fulling
  • fullish
  • fullscreen
  • Quiverfull
  • fullhearted
  • fullcourt
  • nonfull
  • topfull
  • fullsib
  • fullage
  • full-timer
  • full-looking
  • full-handedness
  • full-time
  • full-handedly
  • full-length
  • full-fraught
  • full-faced
  • full-fortuned
  • full-bound
  • full-bodied
  • full-hot
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pleh₁- →