Where does “startfulness” come from?

startfulness (English) comes from English startful, from English Start, from English Stark, from German stark, from Middle High German stark, from Old High German stark, from Proto-Germanic starkuz, from Proto-Germanic sterkaną — rigid, stiff; to love.

startfulness (English): Tendency to start in fright; skittishness

Definitions

  1. Tendency to start in fright; skittishness

Ancestry of “startfulness”, step by step

startfulness traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English startful

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishstartfulTending to start in fright; skittish
2EnglishStartA typical button for video games, originally used...
3EnglishStarkThe language spoken in the Ender's Game series,...
4Germanstarkstrong; great, brilliant, awesome
5Middle High Germanstark
6Old High Germanstarkstrong
7Proto-Germanicstarkuzstiff; rigid; strong
8Proto-Germanicsterkanąto become stiff, stiffen
9Proto-Indo-Europeansterg-rigid, stiff; to love

via English Ness

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishNessAn 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
2Middle Englishnesse
3Old Englishnæsnot, not at all; not; first/third-person singular...
4Proto-Germanicnasjąfoothill; headland; cape
5Proto-Indo-Europeannéh₂snose
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sterg-