Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “knucklebone” come from?

knucklebone (English) comes from English knuckle, from Middle English knokel, from Old English cnucel, from Proto-West Germanic knukil, from Proto-Germanic knukilaz, from Proto-Germanic knukô, from Proto-Indo-European gnew-, from Proto-Indo-European gen- — to squeeze, pinch, kink, ball up, concentrate; to...

knucklebone (English): A bone that forms a knuckle in the human hand, in...

Definitions

  1. A bone that forms a knuckle in the human hand, in...

Ancestry of “knucklebone”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishknuckleAny of the joints between the phalanges of the...
2Middle Englishknokelfinger joint
3Old Englishcnucelthe juncture of two bones; knuckle; joint
4Proto-West Germanicknukilknuckle, joint, small bone
5Proto-Germanicknukilazknuckle, small bone; knot, bump
6Proto-Germanicknukôjoint, bone
7Proto-Indo-Europeangnew-a bundle; knot; knot, bundle
8Proto-Indo-Europeangen-to squeeze, pinch, kink, ball up, concentrate; to...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gen- →