Where does “starve” come from?
Starve comes from Middle English sterven, from Old English steorfan, from Proto-Germanic sterbaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)terp-.
starve (English): To die; in later use especially to die slowly,...
Definitions
- To die; in later use especially to die slowly,...
Ancestry of “starve”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | sterven | To die or perish; To perish from cold or hunger;... |
| 2 | Old English | steorfan | to die |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | *sterban | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | sterbaną | to become stiff; to die, become lifeless |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)terp- | to lose force; lose sensibility, become numb; be... |
Words derived from “starve”