Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “megadrought” come from?

megadrought (English) comes from English drought, from Middle English droughte, from Old English drūgaþ, from Old English drȳġe, from Proto-West Germanic *drūgi, from Proto-Germanic drūgiz, from Proto-Indo-European dʰerǵʰ-, from Proto-Indo-European dʰer- — to support; to hold.

megadrought (English): A drought lasting for decades or centuries

Definitions

  1. A drought lasting for decades or centuries

Ancestry of “megadrought”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishdroughtA period of unusually low rainfall, longer and...
2Middle Englishdroughte—
3Old Englishdrūgaþdryness, drought
4Old Englishdrȳġedry; dry; parched, withered
5Proto-West Germanic*drūgi—
6Proto-Germanicdrūgizhard, solid; dry
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰerǵʰ-to strengthen; to strengthen; become hard; to...
8Proto-Indo-Europeandʰer-to support; to hold
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰer- →