Where does “softwood” come from?
I notice this etymology chain appears problematic. The progression from "soft" (English) → "wood" (Middle English) → "wudu" (Old English) doesn't form a coherent chain for the compound word "softwood." Additionally, the chain shows repeated entries and jumps to Proto-Indo-European roots (weh₂t-, widʰu-, sem-) that don't clearly connect to the "wood" lineage.
Before I write the summary sentence, I need clarification: Is this chain actually meant to trace "softwood" as a compound, or should it trace only the "wood" component? The chain as presented doesn't support a reliable one-sentence etymology without making unsupported inferences.
Could you verify the chain, or confirm whether I should trace only "wood" within the compound?
softwood (English): The wood from any conifer , without regard to how...
Definitions
- The wood from any conifer , without regard to how...
Ancestry of “softwood”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | Wood | — |
| 2 | English | Frog | Alternative form of frog |
| 3 | Portuguese | froco | flock |
| 4 | Latin | floccus | tuft, wisp of wool |
| 5 | Frankish | flokko | down, wool, flock |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | *flukkô | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | plewk- | to fly, flow, run; to splash, to flap with hands |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | plew- | to fly, flow, run |