Where does “heartbreaking” come from?
Heartbreaking derives from English heart, from Middle English herte, from Old English heorte, from Proto-Germanic herutaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱḗr, the root for heart or cardiac organ.
heartbreaking (English): That causes great grief, anguish or distress; The...
Definitions
- That causes great grief, anguish or distress; The...
Ancestry of “heartbreaking”, step by step
heartbreaking traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English heart
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | heart | A muscular organ that pumps blood through the... |
| 2 | Middle English | herte | The heart; One's inner self; the mind or... |
| 3 | Old English | heorte | heart |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hertā | heart |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hertô | heart |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱḗr | heart |
via English breaking
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | breaking | present participle of break; The act by which... |