Where does “mistful” come from?

mistful (English) comes from English mist, from Middle English mist, from Old English mist, from Proto-Germanic mihstaz, from Proto-Indo-European h₃migʰstos, from Proto-Indo-European h₃meygʰ- — fog, mist, cloud; to drizzle.

mistful (English): Clouded with, or as with, mist

Definitions

  1. Clouded with, or as with, mist

Ancestry of “mistful”, step by step

mistful traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English mist

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmistWater or other liquid finely suspended in air; A...
2Middle EnglishmistAlternative form of myst
3Old Englishmistfog; mist
4Proto-Germanicmihstazcloud, mist, fog
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃migʰstos
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃meygʰ-fog, mist, cloud; to drizzle

via English ful

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishful
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₃meygʰ-