Where does “shrubby” come from?
Shrubby is an English adjective formed from shrub plus the suffix -y, ultimately derived from Arabic شِرَاب meaning a drink or beverage.
shrubby (English): Of or resembling a shrub; fruticose; Planted, or...
Definitions
- Of or resembling a shrub; fruticose; Planted, or...
Ancestry of “shrubby”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | shrub | A woody plant smaller than a tree, and usually... |
| 2 | Middle English | schrub | shrub, bush |
| 3 | Old English | sċrybb | a shrub; shrubbery; underbrush |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *skrubbiju | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *skrubbijō | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)kerb- | rough, sharp |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | sḱer- | to caw, crow |