Where does “offshoot” come from?

Offshoot comes from English shoot, influenced by the prefix off- from Old English, ultimately deriving from Proto-Germanic skeutaną and Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to cut or divide.

offshoot (English): That which shoots off or separates from a main...

Definitions

  1. That which shoots off or separates from a main...

Ancestry of “offshoot”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishshootTo launch a projectile; To move or act quickly or...
2Middle Englishshoten—
3Old Englishsċēotanto shoot
4Proto-West Germanicskeutanto shoot
5Proto-Germanicskeutanąto shoot
6Proto-Indo-European(s)kewd-to advance, push; to drive, propel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kewd- →
offshoot — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer