Where does “lifeless” come from?
Lifeless comes from Middle English lyfles, from Old English līflēas, literally meaning "without life."
lifeless (English): inanimate; having no life; dead; having lost...
Definitions
- inanimate; having no life; dead; having lost...
Ancestry of “lifeless”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | lyfles | — |
| 2 | Old English | līflēas | lifeless |
| 3 | Old English | līf | life, existence; life-time |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | līb | body; life |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | lībą | body; life |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | lībaną | to remain, to be left |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | leyp- | to stick; fat or sticky substance |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | lēy- | to leave, let; to want, desire; to let; leave... |
Words derived from “lifeless”