Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “lin” come from?

Lin comes from English linn, Irish linn, and Old Irish linn, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots including ley-, līno-, wert-, and wer-, though the precise meaning remains uncertain.

lin (English): To desist, to stop to cease; Alternative spelling...

Definitions

  1. To desist, to stop to cease; Alternative spelling...

Ancestry of “lin”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishlinnenAlternative form of lynnen
2Old Englishlinnanto stop, cease from, desist, quit, forlet; to...
3Proto-West Germanic*linnan—
4Proto-Germaniclinnanąto turn, move aside, swerve from, dodge; to...
5Proto-Indo-Europeanlēy-to leave, let; to want, desire; to let; leave...

Words derived from “lin”

  • lins
Every word from Proto-Indo-European lēy- →