Where does “touchstone” come from?
touchstone (English) comes from English touch, from Middle English touchen, from Old French tochier, from Vulgar Latin tucco, from Frankish tukkōn, from Proto-Germanic tukkōną, from Proto-Indo-European dewk- — to pull, to draw; to lead.
touchstone (English): A stone used to check the quality of gold alloys...
Definitions
- A stone used to check the quality of gold alloys...
Ancestry of “touchstone”, step by step
touchstone traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English touch
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | touch | Primarily physical senses; Primarily non-physical... |
| 2 | Middle English | touchen | to touch |
| 3 | Old French | tochier | to touch |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | tucco | to knock, strike, offend; to strike; to touch; I... |
| 5 | Frankish | tukkōn | to knock, strike, touch; to touch, hit; to touch |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | tukkōną | to tug, pull; to grab, snatch; to grasp, touch |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dewk- | to pull, to draw; to lead |
via English Stone
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Stone | for someone who lived near a stone worked with stone, from |
| 2 | Middle English | ston | Alternative form of stone |
| 3 | Old English | stān | stone, rock |
| 4 | Old Norse | Veggr | name of a dwarf |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | wajjuz | wall |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | wh̥₁yús | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | weh₁y- | to twist, wind, weave, plait; to wrap, enclose,... |