Where does “latchkey” come from?
Latchkey combines English latch, from Proto-Germanic latjaną meaning to seize, with English key, from Proto-Germanic *slūbilaz, ultimately tracing to Proto-Indo-European leǵ- meaning to lie or lay.
latchkey (English): A key, especially to an outside door; A child who...
Definitions
- A key, especially to an outside door; A child who...
Ancestry of “latchkey”, step by step
latchkey traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English latch
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | latch | To close or lock as if with a latch; To catch;... |
| 2 | Middle English | latche | — |
| 3 | Middle English | lacchen | to seize, catch, grasp; to seize, catch |
| 4 | Old English | læċċan | to grasp, take hold of, catch, seize”; to grasp,... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | lakjaną | To cause to wet; moisten |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ- | to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to... |