Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “thunk” come from?

Thunk derives from English think, via Middle English thynken and Old English þyncan, from Proto-Germanic þunkijaną and Proto-Indo-European teng-.

thunk (English): past participle of think; To strike against...

Definitions

  1. past participle of think; To strike against...

Ancestry of “thunk”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishthinkTo ponder, to go over in one's head; To...
2Middle EnglishthinkenTo think, ponder; to deduce, figure out; to...
3Old Englishþyncanto seem
4Proto-Germanicþunkijanąto seem, to appear

Words derived from “thunk”

  • overthunk
  • rethunk
Every word from Proto-Germanic þunkijaną →