Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “spew” come from?

Spew comes from Middle English spewen, from Old English spīwan, from Proto-Germanic spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)ptyēw-.

spew (English): To eject forcibly and in a stream; To speak or...

Definitions

  1. To eject forcibly and in a stream; To speak or...

Ancestry of “spew”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishspewenTo spew, or puke; to regurgitate...
2Old Englishspīwanto vomit, spit
3Proto-West Germanic*spīwan—
4Proto-Germanicspīwanąto spew, to spit
5Proto-Indo-European(s)ptyēw-to spit, vomit

Words derived from “spew”

  • spawl
  • spewer
  • speweth
  • spewy
  • spawling
  • spewest
  • bespawling
  • spewiness
  • bespew
  • bespawl
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)ptyēw- →