Where does “honeysucker” come from?
honeysucker (English) comes from English honey, from Middle English hony, from Old English huniġ, from Proto-West Germanic hunag, from Proto-Germanic *hunagą, from Proto-Germanic hunangą, from Proto-Indo-European kn̥h₂onk-o-s, from Proto-Indo-European kn̥h₂ónks — honey.
honeysucker (English): A honeyeater
Definitions
- A honeyeater
Ancestry of “honeysucker”, step by step
honeysucker traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English honey
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | honey | A viscous, sweet fluid produced from plant nectar... |
| 2 | Middle English | hony | Honey; Nectar; the secretion of flowers;... |
| 3 | Old English | huniġ | honey |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hunag | honey |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *hunagą | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | hunangą | Alternative form of *hunagą |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | kn̥h₂onk-o-s | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | kn̥h₂ónks | honey |
via English sucker
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | sucker | A person or animal that sucks, especially a... |
| 2 | English | suck | An instance of drawing something into one's mouth... |
| 3 | Middle English | souken | To suck; to extract or draw with the mouth; To... |
| 4 | Old English | sūcan | to suck |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | sūkan | to suck; to suckle |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | sūkaną | to suck; to suckle |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | sug- | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | sew- | to press out, extract; juice; liquid, rain; to... |