Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “shoot” come from?

Shoot comes from Middle English shoten, from Proto-Germanic skeutaną meaning to thrust or propel, from Proto-Indo-European skewd- and ultimately sek- meaning to cut or separate.

shoot (English): To launch a projectile; To move or act quickly or...

Definitions

  1. To launch a projectile; To move or act quickly or...

Ancestry of “shoot”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishshoten—
2Old Englishsċēotanto shoot
3Proto-West Germanicskeutanto shoot
4Proto-Germanicskeutanąto shoot
5Proto-Indo-European(s)kewd-to advance, push; to drive, propel

Words derived from “shoot”

  • shooting
  • offshoot
  • overshoot
  • troubleshoot
  • skeet
  • undershoot
  • sharpshooting
  • crapshoot
  • reshoot
  • outshoot
  • shooteth
  • trapshooting
  • shootist
  • shootable
  • photoshoot
  • wingshooting
  • shootee
  • upshoot
  • inshoot
  • shootaround
  • nonshooting
  • shooty
  • shootest
  • backshooter
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kewd- →