Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “shoal” come from?

Shoal derives from Middle English schold and scholde, from Old English sculan, from Proto-Germanic skulaną, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (s)kel-.

shoal (English): Shallow; A sandbank or sandbar creating a...

Definitions

  1. Shallow; A sandbank or sandbar creating a...

Ancestry of “shoal”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishscholdAlternative form of scholde
2Old Englishsċealdshallow
3Proto-Germanicskalidaz—
4Proto-Germanicskaljanąto peel, to shell
5Proto-Germanicskalazparched, shallow
6Proto-Indo-European(s)kelh₁-to parch, wither

Words derived from “shoal”

  • shoaly
  • shoaliness
  • shoalwise
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kelh₁- →