Where does “glance” come from?

Glance comes from Middle English glacen, from Old French glacier meaning to slip or slide, from Frankish glīdan, from Proto-Germanic glīdaną, from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰleydʰ-.

glance (English): To look briefly; To graze at a surface; To...

Definitions

  1. To look briefly; To graze at a surface; To...

Ancestry of “glance”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishglenchen(of a weapon) to glance, graze
2Old Frenchglacierto slip, make slippery; to slip, slide
3Frankishglīdanto slide, glide; to glide, to slide
4Proto-Germanicglīdanąto glide; slide
5Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰleydʰ-to glide

Words derived from “glance”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰleydʰ- →Every word from Proto-Germanic glīdaną →Every word from Frankish glīdan →