Where does “many-tongued” come from?

many-tongued (English) comes from English tongued, from English tongue, from Middle English tung, from Old English tung, from Proto-West Germanic tungā, from Proto-Germanic tungǭ, from Proto-Indo-European dn̥ǵʰwéh₂s — tongue.

many-tongued (English): Having many tongues

Definitions

  1. Having many tongues

Ancestry of “many-tongued”, step by step

many-tongued traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English tongued

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishtonguedResembling a tongue; Having a particular manner...
2EnglishtongueThe flexible muscular organ in the mouth that is...
3Middle Englishtungtongue; A tongue-shaped thing; language, speech,...
4Old Englishtung
5Proto-West Germanictungātongue; speech, language
6Proto-Germanictungǭtongue; speech, language
7Proto-Indo-Europeandn̥ǵʰwéh₂stongue

via English many

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmanyAn indefinite large number of; Used to indicate,...
2Middle Englishmany
3Old Englishmaniġmany, much
4Proto-West Germanic*managmany
5Proto-Germanicmanagazmany; much
6Proto-Indo-Europeanmenegʰ-many, sufficient
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dn̥ǵʰwéh₂sEvery word from Proto-Germanic tungǭEvery word from Proto-West Germanic tungā
many-tongued — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer