Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “palter” come from?

palter (English) comes from Middle English palter, from Middle Low German palter, from Old Saxon paltro, from Proto-Germanic paltrô.

palter (English): To talk insincerely; to prevaricate or equivocate...

Definitions

  1. To talk insincerely; to prevaricate or equivocate...

Ancestry of “palter”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishpalterrag, trifle, worthless thing
2Middle Low Germanpalterrag, cloth
3Old Saxonpaltro—
4Proto-Germanicpaltrô—

Words derived from “palter”

  • palterer
  • palterly
Every word from Proto-Germanic paltrô →