Where does “stay” come from?
Stay derives from Middle English steyen, from Old English stæġ, from Proto-Germanic stagą, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European steh₂-, meaning to stand or be firm.
stay (English): To prop; support; sustain; hold up; steady; To...
Definitions
- To prop; support; sustain; hold up; steady; To...
Ancestry of “stay”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | stay | A stay |
| 2 | Old French | estaye | prop, support |
| 3 | Middle Dutch | staeye | a prop, stay |
| 4 | Middle Dutch | staede | — |
| 5 | Old Dutch | stad | a site, place, location, standing |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | stadiz | place, location |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | stéh₂tis | standing, position |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | *steh₂- | — |
Words derived from “stay”