Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “straight” come from?

Straight comes from Middle English streight, derived from Middle English strecchen (to stretch), from Old English streċċan, from Proto-West Germanic strakkjan, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European streg- or (s)terg-.

straight (English): Not crooked or bent; having a constant direction...

Definitions

  1. Not crooked or bent; having a constant direction...

Ancestry of “straight”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishstreightstraight; direct
2Middle EnglishstrecchenTo stretch out, spread, extend; To stretch,...
3Old Englishstreċċanto stretch, hold out, extend, spread out,...
4Proto-West Germanicstrakkjanto stretch, to make straight
5Proto-Indo-European(s)treg-rigid, stiff; to be stiff, rigid, strong

Words derived from “straight”

  • straightforward
  • straighten
  • straightway
  • straightforwardly
  • straightforwardness
  • straightener
  • straightish
  • nonstraight
  • restraighten
  • unstraight
  • unstraightforward
  • straightface
  • straightforth
  • unstraightforwardness
  • straightwise
  • unstraighten
  • straighteneth
  • antistraight
  • straightsplain
  • straighthorn
  • straightenest
  • straightenable
  • nonstraightenable
  • unstraightenable
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)treg- →