Where does “lost errand” come from?
lost errand (English) comes from English errand, from Middle English erande, from Old English ǣrende, from Old English -ian, from Old English -ōjan, from Proto-West Germanic -ōn, from Proto-Germanic -ōną, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti — he, she.
lost errand (English): a mission likely to fail
Definitions
- a mission likely to fail
Ancestry of “lost errand”, step by step
lost errand traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English errand
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | errand | A journey undertaken to accomplish some task; The... |
| 2 | Middle English | erande | — |
| 3 | Old English | ǣrende | message |
| 4 | Old English | -ian | Forms verbs from nouns and adjectives |
| 5 | Old English | -ōjan | — |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | -ōn | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -ōną | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 11 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |