Where does “spill” come from?

Spill comes from Middle English spillen, from Old English spillan, from Proto-Germanic spillijaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)pel-.

spill (English): To drop something so that it spreads out or makes...

Definitions

  1. To drop something so that it spreads out or makes...

Ancestry of “spill”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishspillenTo slaughter, eliminate; to cause the death of;...
2Old Englishspillanto destroy; spill
3Proto-Germanicspillijanąto split
4Proto-Indo-Europeanspel-to break; to break off, split; to cleave, break

Words derived from “spill”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European spel- →Every word from Proto-Germanic spillijaną →Every word from Old English spillan →