Where does “mulch” come from?

Mulch derives from Middle English melsche, Old English melsc, Proto-Germanic mili, and Proto-Indo-European mélit, meaning honey, though the sense development to its current meaning remains unclear.

mulch (English): Any material used to cover the top layer of soil...

Definitions

  1. Any material used to cover the top layer of soil...

Ancestry of “mulch”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishmelsche—
2Old Englishmelsc—
3Proto-Germanicmilihoney
4Proto-Indo-Europeanmélithoney

Words derived from “mulch”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European mélit →Every word from Proto-Germanic mili →Every word from Old English melsc →