Where does “grab” come from?
Grab comes from Middle Dutch grabben, whose ultimate origin and earliest meaning remain uncertain.
grab (English): To grip suddenly; to seize; to clutch; To make a...
Definitions
- To grip suddenly; to seize; to clutch; To make a...
Ancestry of “grab”, step by step
grab traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Dutch grabben
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dutch | grabben | — |
| 2 | Old Saxon | gravan | to dig |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | graban | to dig; to engrave |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | grabaną | to dig; to engrave, scratch |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰrābʰ- | to dig, scratch, scrape |
via Arabic غُرَاب
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arabic | غُرَاب | raven, crow |