Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “ghostwritten” come from?

ghostwritten (English) comes from English written, from English write, from Middle English writen, from Old English wrītan, from Proto-West Germanic wrītan, from Proto-Germanic wrītaną, from Proto-Indo-European wēr-, from Proto-Indo-European wer- — to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel.

ghostwritten (English): Written by a ghostwriter

Definitions

  1. Written by a ghostwriter

Ancestry of “ghostwritten”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwrittenOf, relating, or characteristic of writing;...
2EnglishwriteTo form letters, words or symbols on a surface in...
3Middle EnglishwritenTo write ; note the following common specialised...
4Old Englishwrītanto incise, engrave; to scratch, carve, write; to...
5Proto-West Germanicwrītanto scratch, to carve
6Proto-Germanicwrītanąto scratch, carve; to engrave, inscribe, write
7Proto-Indo-Europeanwēr-true
8Proto-Indo-Europeanwer-to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European wer- →