Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “gall” come from?

Gall comes from French galle, from Latin galla, from Proto-Indo-European gel-, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰelh₃-.

gall (English): Bile, especially that of an animal; the greenish,...

Definitions

  1. Bile, especially that of an animal; the greenish,...

Ancestry of “gall”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishgalle—
2Old Frenchgalle—
3Latingallathe oak apple, gall-nut; a harsh, sour kind of...
4Gaulishgallāvessel
5Proto-Germanicgallǭgall, bile
6Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰelh₃-to flourish; green, yellow

Words derived from “gall”

  • gallbladder
  • galling
  • gallstone
  • gallingly
  • gally
  • nutgall
  • windgall
  • gallfly
  • gallnut
  • galleth
  • galsome
  • begall
  • gallest
  • gallsickness
  • spurgall
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰelh₃- →