Where does “titter” come from?
Titter comes from Middle English titren, which derives from Middle English titten, of unknown ultimate origin.
titter (English): To laugh or giggle in a somewhat subdued or...
Definitions
- To laugh or giggle in a somewhat subdued or...
Ancestry of “titter”, step by step
titter traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English tit
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | tit | A mammary gland, teat; A woman's breast; An... |
| 2 | Middle English | tit | — |
| 3 | Old English | tit | — |
| 4 | Old English | titt | tit, teat, breast; nipple |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | titt- | teat; nipple; breast |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | tata- | father; parent; nipple |
| 7 | Sanskrit | तथा | in that manner |
| 8 | Sanskrit | यथा | in which manner or way, according as, as, like |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | HyátʰaH | in which way, as, in which manner |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | yós | that, who, which |
| 11 | Proto-Finnic | wiša | — |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | wišás | poison, venom |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | wisós | fluidity, slime, poison; poison; poison; slime;... |