Where does “headstay” come from?
headstay (English) comes from English stay, from Middle English stay, from Old French estaye, from Middle Dutch staeye, from Middle Dutch staede, from Old Dutch stad, from Proto-Germanic stadiz, from Proto-Indo-European stéh₂tis.
Ancestry of “headstay”, step by step
headstay traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English stay
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | stay | To prop; support; sustain; hold up; steady; To... |
| 2 | Middle English | stay | A stay |
| 3 | Old French | estaye | prop, support |
| 4 | Middle Dutch | staeye | a prop, stay |
| 5 | Middle Dutch | staede | — |
| 6 | Old Dutch | stad | a site, place, location, standing |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | stadiz | place, location |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | stéh₂tis | standing, position |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | *steh₂- | — |
via English head
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | head | The part of the body of an animal or human which... |
| 2 | English | -y | Added to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives... |
| 3 | Middle English | -y | Designates an adjective, in many cases formed by... |
| 4 | Old English | -iġ | -y, -ic |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -g | Forms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -gaz | -y |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ḱos | -y, -ic |