Where does “milkweed” come from?
Milkweed derives from English milk and wee, from Old English wēod, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂melǵ- meaning to milk and weǵʰ- meaning to move or turn.
milkweed (English): Any of several plants that have a milky sap and...
Definitions
- Any of several plants that have a milky sap and...
Ancestry of “milkweed”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | milk | A white liquid produced by the mammary glands of... |
| 2 | Middle English | milk | — |
| 3 | Old English | meolc | milk |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | meluk | milk |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | meluks | milk |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂melǵ- | to milk; milk |