Where does “tomfoolish” come from?
tomfoolish (English) comes from English tomfool, from English fool, from French fouler, from Middle French fouller, from Old French foler, from Medieval Latin fullo, from Latin fullo, from Proto-Indo-European bʰleh₃-.
tomfoolish (English): silly; foolish
Ancestry of “tomfoolish”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | tomfool | a silly or stupid person, especially a boy or... |
| 2 | English | fool | A person with poor judgment or little... |
| 3 | French | fouler | to stamp, impress, dent; to mill; to walk on,... |
| 4 | Middle French | fouller | to mistreat |
| 5 | Old French | foler | to destroy; to mistreat |
| 6 | Medieval Latin | fullo | fuller |
| 7 | Latin | fullo | fuller |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰleh₃- | bloom, flower |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰel- | to sound; to speak, roar, bark; shiny, white; to... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰōl- | — |