Where does “threaten” come from?

Threaten comes from Middle English þreaten, a verb of uncertain ultimate origin whose earliest sense remains unknown.

threaten (English): To make a threat against someone; to use threats;...

Definitions

  1. To make a threat against someone; to use threats;...

Ancestry of “threaten”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishþreten—
2Old Englishþrēatianto threaten, to push; to press, oppress, repress,...
3Proto-Indo-Europeantrewd-to push, to thrust

Words derived from “threaten”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European trewd- →Every word from Old English þrēatian →Every word from Middle English þreten →