Where does “smell” come from?
Smell comes from Middle English smellen, from Old English smyllan, from Proto-West Germanic smallijan, from Proto-Indo-European smel-.
smell (English): A sensation, pleasant or unpleasant, detected by...
Definitions
- A sensation, pleasant or unpleasant, detected by...
Ancestry of “smell”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | smellen | To sense a smell or smells; To give off an odor;... |
| 2 | Old English | smiellan | to fume, reek |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | smallijan | to glow, burn, smoulder |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | smel- | to burn, smoulder, smoke; tar, pitch; to burn,... |
Words derived from “smell”