Where does “skew-whiff” come from?

skew-whiff (English) comes from English weft, from Middle English wefte, from Old English wefan, from Proto-West Germanic weban, from Proto-Germanic webaną, from Proto-Indo-European webʰ- — to weave, braid.

skew-whiff (English): Askew; lopsided, not straight

Definitions

  1. Askew; lopsided, not straight

Ancestry of “skew-whiff”, step by step

skew-whiff traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English weft

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishweftThe horizontal threads that are interlaced...
2Middle Englishwefteweft; Strands of thread in a spiderweb
3Old Englishwefanto weave
4Proto-West Germanicwebanto weave
5Proto-Germanicwebanąto weave
6Proto-Indo-Europeanwebʰ-to weave, braid

via English skew

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishskewTo form or shape in an oblique way; to cause to...
2Middle Englishskeuen—
3Old Northern Frenchescuer—

Words derived from “skew-whiff”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European webʰ- →Every word from Proto-Germanic webaną →Every word from Proto-West Germanic weban →