Where does “swellfish” come from?

swellfish (English) comes from English Fish, from Old English fiscian, from Proto-West Germanic fiskōn, from Proto-Germanic fiskōną, from Proto-Germanic -ōną, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé- — he, she.

swellfish (English): Any plectognath fish that dilates itself, such as...

Definitions

  1. Any plectognath fish that dilates itself, such as...

Ancestry of “swellfish”, step by step

swellfish traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Fish

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishFishThe constellation and zodiacal sign Pisces
2Old Englishfiscianto fish
3Proto-West Germanicfiskōnto fish, to catch fish
4Proto-Germanicfiskōnąto fish, to catch fish
5Proto-Germanic-ōnąCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
6Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
7Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-
9Chichewaiyehe, she

via English swell

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishswellTo become bigger, especially due to being...
2Middle EnglishswellenTo swell; to grow or become bigger or stronger;...
3Old Englishswellanto swell
4Proto-West Germanic*swellan
5Proto-Germanicswellanąto swell
6Proto-Indo-Europeanswel-to smolder; burn; scorch; beam, board, frame,...
Every word from Chichewa iyeEvery word from Proto-Indo-European -yétiEvery word from Proto-Germanic -ōną