Where does “landshark” come from?

landshark (English) comes from English Land, from Middle English land, from Old English hland, from Proto-Germanic hlandą, from Proto-Indo-European klān- — liquid, wet ground.

landshark (English): A customs officer; A swindler or fraudster; A...

Definitions

  1. A customs officer; A swindler or fraudster; A...

Ancestry of “landshark”, step by step

landshark traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Land

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishLandThe part of Earth which is not covered by oceans or other bodies of water
2Middle EnglishlandAlternative form of lond; urine
3Old Englishhlandurine
4Proto-Germanichlandąurine
5Proto-Indo-Europeanklān-liquid, wet ground

via English shark

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsharkA scaleless, predatory fish of the superorder...
2GermanSchurkevillain, scoundrel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European klān- →Every word from Proto-Germanic hlandą →Every word from Old English hland →
landshark — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer