Where does “prithee” come from?
prithee (English) comes from English I, from Old French i, from Latin hīc, from Latin heic, from Latin hic, from Proto-Italic hek(e), from Proto-Indo-European gʰi-ḱe, from Proto-Indo-European ḱe — to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,...
prithee (English): Short for "I pray thee", i.e. Please
Definitions
- Short for "I pray thee", i.e. Please
Ancestry of “prithee”, step by step
prithee traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English I
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | I | The speaker or writer, referred to as the... |
| 2 | Old French | i | there |
| 3 | Latin | hīc | this; these in the plural |
| 4 | Latin | heic | — |
| 5 | Latin | hic | this; these in the plural |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | hek(e) | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰi-ḱe | this, here |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 9 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 10 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 11 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 12 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 13 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via English pray
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | pray | To direct words, thoughts, or one's attention to... |
| 2 | Middle English | preien | to pray |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | preier | Alternative form of proiier |
| 4 | Old French | proiier | to pray; to pray; to beg; to implore; to beg |
| 5 | Latin | precor | I beseech, beg, pray, entreat; I wish well or ill... |
| 6 | Latin | prex | prayer; request; entreaty |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | preks | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | préḱs | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | preḱ- | to ask |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥ḱneh₂ | — |
via English thee
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | thee | 1598, William Shakespeare, "Henry IV part 1",... |
| 2 | Middle English | þe | the; Second-person singular pronoun indicating a... |
| 3 | Middle English | in | Any kind of accomodation; particularly; A home or... |
| 4 | Old English | inn | in; inn |
| 5 | Old English | inne | inside, in; indoors |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | innai | within, inside |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | in | in; into |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | én | in |