Where does “snakeling” come from?
snakeling (English) comes from English snake, from Middle English snake, from Old English snaca, from Proto-Germanic snakô, from Proto-Germanic snakaną, from Proto-Indo-European sneg- — to crawl, creeping thing.
snakeling (English): A small or young snake
Definitions
- A small or young snake
Ancestry of “snakeling”, step by step
snakeling traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English snake
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | snake | A legless reptile of the sub-order Serpentes with... |
| 2 | Middle English | snake | snake; serpent |
| 3 | Old English | snaca | snake |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | snakô | snake |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | snakaną | to crawl |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | sneg- | to crawl, creeping thing |
via English Ling
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Ling | Any of various codlike saltwater fish often used as food by humans, those of the genus Molva, in the family Lotidae |
| 2 | Middle English | ling | Any of various varieties of heather or broom |
| 3 | Old Norse | lyng | heather, ling |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | lingwą | heather, ling |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | lengʷʰom | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | lengʷʰ- | light, agile, nimble; light, not heavy, agile,... |