Where does “newlywed” come from?
Newlywed comes from English newly and English wed, which derives from Middle English wedden, Old English weddian, Proto-West Germanic waddjōn, and Proto-Germanic wadjōną, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wedʰ- meaning to pledge or promise.
newlywed (English): A recently married person; recently married
Definitions
- A recently married person; recently married
Ancestry of “newlywed”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | newly | Very recently; in the immediate past |
| 2 | Middle English | newly | — |
| 3 | Old English | nīewlīċe | newly |
| 4 | Old English | -līċe | — |
| 5 | Old English | -e | forming adverbs from adjectives; -ly |
| 6 | Old English | -en | mæġþ + API → mæġden; cocc + API → cycen, cicen;... |
| 7 | Old Norse | -inn | Used to create adjectives from nouns, meaning... |
| 8 | Proto-Norse | -īna- | — |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | -īnaz | -en |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -iHnos | Creates adjectives of materials |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -no- | adjectival suffix |