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

  1. To die; in later use especially to die slowly,...

Ancestry of “starve”, step by step

starve traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English sterven

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishstervenTo die or perish; To perish from cold or hunger;...
2Old Englishsteorfanto die
3Proto-West Germanic*sterbanto die
4Proto-Germanicsterbanąto become stiff; to die, become lifeless
5Proto-Indo-European(s)terp-to lose force; lose sensibility, become numb; be...

via Old Norse starfa

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsestarfato work, labour
2Proto-Germanic*starfąlabor

Words derived from “starve”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)terp- →Every word from Proto-Germanic sterbaną →Every word from Proto-West Germanic *sterban →