Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “stepson” come from?

Stepson derives from Middle English stepsone, from Old English stēopsunu, from Proto-Germanic steupasunuz, a compound meaning a son by marriage rather than blood relation.

stepson (English): The son of one's spouse, but not one's own child

Definitions

  1. The son of one's spouse, but not one's own child

Ancestry of “stepson”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishstepsone—
2Old Englishstēopsunustepson
3Proto-Germanicsteupasunuzstepson
Every word from Proto-Germanic steupasunuz →