Where does “stranglehold” come from?
I need to analyze this chain carefully, but I notice something problematic: the chain provided doesn't actually support "stranglehold" as a coherent etymology. Let me trace through what's given: - English stranglehold - English hold | English hole - Latin strangulo | Ancient Greek στραγγαλόομαι - Proto-Indo-European kel- - Latin oleum | Ancient Greek ἔλαιον - Latin oleum The chain splits and becomes incoherent. "Strangulo" comes from Greek στραγγαλόομαι (to strangle), but then it branches to "kel-" and separately to oleum/ἔλαιον (oil), which makes no etymological sense for "stranglehold." A legitimate stranglehold etymology would be: English stranglehold = English strangle + hold, where "str
stranglehold (English): A grip or control so strong as to stifle or cut...
Definitions
- A grip or control so strong as to stifle or cut...
Ancestry of “stranglehold”, step by step
stranglehold traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English strangle
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | strangle | To kill someone by squeezing the throat so as to... |
| 2 | Middle English | stranglen | To strangle or choke usually at the throat |
| 3 | Old French | estrangler | to strangle |
| 4 | Latin | strangulō | to strangle, throttle |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | στραγγαλόομαι | to be twisted or knotted up; to be strangled |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -όω | Added to a noun or adjective to make a verb with... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -oyéti | Creates factitive verbs from adjectives |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 10 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via English hold
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | hold | To grasp or grip; To contain or store; "To... |
| 2 | English | hole | A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit;... |
| 3 | Middle English | hole | healthy; safe; whole, complete, full |
| 4 | Old English | hol | a hole, a hollow; calumny; slander |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | hol | hollow; hole |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | hulą | a hollow; depression; hole |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | hulaz | hollow |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱel- | to cover; to incline |