Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “sing” come from?

Sing comes from Old English singan, from Proto-Germanic singwaną, from Proto-Indo-European sengʷʰ-, a root of uncertain ultimate origin and meaning.

sing (English): To produce musical or harmonious sounds with...

Definitions

  1. To produce musical or harmonious sounds with...

Ancestry of “sing”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishsingenTo sing ; to produce noises with one's voice; To...
2Old Englishsinganto sing, chant
3Proto-West Germanicsingwanto sing
4Proto-Germanicsingwanąto sing
5Proto-Indo-Europeansengʷʰ-to recite; to sing

Words derived from “sing”

  • singing
  • sung
  • unsung
  • singsong
  • singeth
  • singable
  • singest
  • singalong
  • unsingable
  • folksinging
  • outsing
  • nonsinging
  • singability
  • undersung
  • singingly
  • oversing
  • unsinging
  • singableness
  • countersing
  • resing
  • foresing
  • filksing
  • undersing
  • singback
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sengʷʰ- →