Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “slit” come from?

Slit comes from Old English slītan, from Proto-Germanic slītaną, from Proto-Indo-European slaid-, ultimately from the root (s)kel- meaning to cut or split.

slit (English): A narrow cut or opening; a slot; The opening of...

Definitions

  1. A narrow cut or opening; a slot; The opening of...

Ancestry of “slit”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishslittenpast participle of slit
2Old Englishslītanto slit, tear, rend, shiver, split, rend to...
3Proto-West Germanicslītanto tear apart
4Proto-Germanicslītanąto tear apart
5Proto-Indo-Europeansleyd-—

Words derived from “slit”

  • slitted
  • slitlike
  • slitter
  • slitty
  • slitless
  • unslit
  • arrowslit
  • eyeslit
  • slotten
  • preslit
  • slitlet
  • nanoslit
  • piss slit
  • slitshell
  • unslitted
  • slitmask
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sleyd- →