Where does “spunkiness” come from?
spunkiness (English) comes from English spunky, from English spunk, from English funk, from French funquer, from Vulgar Latin fumicare, from Latin fūmigāre, from Latin fūmus, from Proto-Italic fūmos — smoke; mist, haze.
spunkiness (English): The quality of being spunky
Definitions
- The quality of being spunky
Ancestry of “spunkiness”, step by step
spunkiness traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English spunky
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | spunky | Spirited or plucky; Pertaining to or like spunk;... |
| 2 | English | spunk | A spark; Touchwood; tinder; A piece of tinder,... |
| 3 | English | funk | Foul or unpleasant smell, especially body odor; A... |
| 4 | French | funquer | — |
| 5 | Vulgar Latin | fumicare | — |
| 6 | Latin | fūmigāre | — |
| 7 | Latin | fūmus | smoke, steam, fume |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | fūmos | smoke |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰuh₂mós | smoke |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |
via English Ness
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Ness | An Ulster princess and the mother of Conchobar mac Nessa and Findchoem in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. Daughter of Eochaid Sálbuide. Also the mother of Cormac Cond Longas by incest with Conchobar mac Nessa |
| 2 | Middle English | nesse | — |
| 3 | Old English | næs | not, not at all; not; first/third-person singular... |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | nasją | foothill; headland; cape |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | néh₂s | nose |