Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “lone wolf” come from?

lone wolf (English) comes from English Lone, from English alone, from Middle English allone, from Middle English on, from Old English on, from Proto-West Germanic ana, from Proto-Germanic *an, from Proto-Germanic ana — on, onto.

lone wolf (English): A wolf that is not part of a pack; A person who...

Definitions

  1. A wolf that is not part of a pack; A person who...

Ancestry of “lone wolf”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishLone—
2EnglishaloneBy oneself, solitary; Apart from, or exclusive...
3Middle Englishallonealone
4Middle Englishonon, in; on; Alternative form of oon
5Old Englishonon, in, at, among; from
6Proto-West Germanicanaon
7Proto-Germanic*an—
8Proto-Germanicanaon, at; on, onto; ana
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

Words derived from “lone wolf”

  • lone wolfer
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →