Where does “stinking” come from?
Stinking comes from Old English stincende, formed from the verb stincan with the suffix -ing, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European stengʷ-.
stinking (English): Having a pungent smell; Very bad and undesirable;...
Definitions
- Having a pungent smell; Very bad and undesirable;...
Ancestry of “stinking”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | stynkynge | The emission of a foul odour; A bad smell;... |
| 2 | Middle English | stynken | To emit a smell or stench; to stink; To be... |
| 3 | Old English | stincan | to smell; to stink |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *stinkwan | to stink |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | stinkwaną | to hit; thrust; clash; to emit a smell; stink |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | stengʷ- | to push |