Where does “thrill” come from?
Thrill comes from Middle Dutch drillen, from Old English þrǣd, from Proto-Germanic þrēduz, from Proto-Indo-European ter-, ultimately from the root terh₁- meaning to twist or turn.
thrill (English): To suddenly excite someone, or to give someone...
Definitions
- To suddenly excite someone, or to give someone...
Ancestry of “thrill”, step by step
thrill traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English drill
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | drill | To create by removing material with a drill; To... |
| 2 | Middle Dutch | drillen | bore, move in a circle |
| 3 | Old Dutch | thrillen | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | þriljaną | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | ter- | tender, weak; young creature |
| 6 | Italian | termine | end, close; limit, term, date, time; term, word |
| 7 | Latin | terminus | a boundary, limit, end |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | termenos | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | térmn̥ | boundary, end |
via Old English þyrlian
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old English | þyrlian | to pierce |