Where does “lover” come from?

Lover derives from Middle English lufere, a term for one who loves or is in love.

lover (English): One who loves and cares for another person in a...

Definitions

  1. One who loves and cares for another person in a...

Ancestry of “lover”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishlovereA friend; one who is favorable towards someone or something
2Middle Englishlovento love
3Old Englishlofianto praise; exalt; to appraise; value; put a price...
4Proto-Germanic*lobōn
5Proto-Germaniclubōnąto praise
6Proto-Indo-Europeanlewbʰ-to desire, covet, want; to admire, praise; to...
7Proto-Indo-Europeanlēw-to sound, resound, sing out; to leave

Words derived from “lover

Every word from Proto-Indo-European lēw-