Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “topple” come from?

Topple comes from Middle English -el, Old English -el, Proto-Germanic tuppaz, Proto-Indo-European dumb-, and Proto-Indo-European -lós, ultimately denoting something that tips or falls over.

topple (English): to push, throw over, overturn or overthrow...

Definitions

  1. to push, throw over, overturn or overthrow...

Ancestry of “topple”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-leA frequentative suffix of verbs, indicating...
2Middle English-el—
3Old French-elSuffix that usually denotes a masculine noun
4Latin-ellusAlternative form of -ulus; "forming masculine...
5Latin-ulusUsed to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating...
6Proto-Italic-olos—
7Proto-Italic-elos—
8Proto-Indo-European-e-lós—
9Proto-Indo-European-lósForms agent nouns from verbal roots

Words derived from “topple”

  • toppler
  • topplesome
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -lós →