Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “loverless” come from?

loverless (English) comes from English lover, from Middle English lovere, from Middle English loven, from Old English lofian, from Proto-Germanic *lobōn, from Proto-Germanic lubōną, from Proto-Indo-European lewbʰ-, from Proto-Indo-European lēw- — to sound, resound, sing out; to leave.

loverless (English): Without a lover

Definitions

  1. Without a lover

Ancestry of “loverless”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishloverOne who loves and cares for another person in a...
2Middle Englishlovere—
3Middle Englishlovento love
4Old Englishlofianto praise; exalt; to appraise; value; put a price...
5Proto-Germanic*lobōn—
6Proto-Germaniclubōnąto praise
7Proto-Indo-Europeanlewbʰ-to desire, covet, want; to admire, praise; to...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanlēw-to sound, resound, sing out; to leave
Every word from Proto-Indo-European lēw- →