Where does “gray” come from?

Gray derives from Middle English grey, Old English grǣġ, Proto-Germanic grēwaz, and Proto-Indo-European ǵʰreh₁-, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root gʰer-.

gray (English): Having a color somewhere between white and black,...

Definitions

  1. Having a color somewhere between white and black,...

Ancestry of “gray”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishgreyBritain and Commonwealth of Nations standard...
2Middle Englishgreygrey, dull, drab; glinting, glistening; grey
3Old Englishgrǣġ—
4Proto-West Germanic*grāugrey
5Proto-Germanicgrēwazgrey
6Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰreh₁-to become green, grow; to grow; to green, to grow

Words derived from “gray”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰreh₁- →Every word from Proto-Germanic grēwaz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic *grāu →