Where does “guideline” come from?
guideline (English) comes from English Guide, from Middle English guide, from Old French guide, from Occitan guida, from Occitan guidar, from Frankish wītan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European wóyde — to see.
guideline (English): A non-specific rule or principle that provides...
Definitions
- A non-specific rule or principle that provides...
Ancestry of “guideline”, step by step
guideline traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Guide
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Guide | OS grid ref SD7025 |
| 2 | Middle English | guide | — |
| 3 | Old French | guide | a guide |
| 4 | Occitan | guida | — |
| 5 | Occitan | guidar | to guide, to lead |
| 6 | Frankish | wītan | to show the way, lead; to accuse, to blame |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | *witaną | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | wóyde | to have seen, to know |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | weyd- | to see |
via English line
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | line | A path through two or more points (compare ‘segment’); a continuous mark, including as made by a pen; any path, curved or straight |
| 2 | Middle English | line | rope, cord; line, rule, ruler, measure; rule,... |
| 3 | Old English | līne | line, rope, cord; line, cable, rope, hawser,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *līnā | line, chord, rope, string |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | līnǭ | that which is made of flax; line, chord, rope,... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | līną | flax |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | līno- | flax |