Where does “sear” come from?
Sear comes from Middle English seere, from Middle English sure, from Latin securus meaning "free from care or anxiety."
sear (English): Dry; withered, especially of vegetation; To char,...
Definitions
- Dry; withered, especially of vegetation; To char,...
Ancestry of “sear”, step by step
sear traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Old French serre
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | serre | — |
| 2 | Old French | serrer | to grip tightly; to shut |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | serrare | close, shut; to close, shut; inflection of... |
| 4 | Latin | serāre | — |
| 5 | Latin | sēra | a bar or bolt for fastening doors |
| 6 | Latin | serō | to sow, plant |
| 7 | Latin | sērus | late, too late |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | swerjos | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | swer-yo-s | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | swer- | to ache; to fester; wound; injury |
via Middle English sere
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | sere | dry, withered, shrunken, brittle; Individual,... |
| 2 | Old Norse | sér | dative of sik; second/third-person singular... |
| 3 | Old Norse | sik | oneself |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | sik | Alternative form of *sek |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | sīką | trickling water; a dribble; a slow brook; a... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | seykʷ- | to moisten; to filter |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | sey- | to be wet; dribble; run; to stretch one's arm;... |