Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “heartstoppingly” come from?

heartstoppingly (English) comes from English heartstopping, from English stopping, from English stop, from English top, from Middle English top, from Old English topp, from Proto-West Germanic *topp, from Proto-Germanic tuppaz — tail, rod, staff, pole, penis; tail, rod, staff,...

heartstoppingly (English): In a heartstopping way

Definitions

  1. In a heartstopping way

Ancestry of “heartstoppingly”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishheartstoppingVery exciting or shocking, as though to cause...
2Englishstoppingpresent participle of stop; The act of something...
3EnglishstopTo cease moving; To not continue; To cause to...
4EnglishtopThe highest or uppermost part of something; A...
5Middle EnglishtopThe summit or top of something, especially a...
6Old Englishtopp—
7Proto-West Germanic*topp—
8Proto-Germanictuppaztuft, plait; top, summit
9Proto-Indo-Europeandumb-tail, rod, staff, pole, penis; tail, rod, staff,...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dumb- →