Where does “thieves” come from?

Thieves comes from Middle English thef, Old English þēof, Proto-Germanic þeubaz, and Proto-Indo-European tewpó-.

thieves (English): plural of thief; Third-person singular simple...

Definitions

  1. plural of thief; Third-person singular simple...

Ancestry of “thieves”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishthiefOne who carries out a theft; One who steals...
2Middle ScotstheifA criminal or villain; a malicious or lawbreaking person
3Middle EnglishþefAlternative form of thef
4Old Englishþēofthief
5Proto-West Germanicþeubthief
6Proto-Germanicþeubazthief
7Proto-Indo-Europeantewpó-—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European tewpó- →Every word from Proto-Germanic þeubaz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic þeub →