Where does “towfish” come from?

towfish (English) comes from English Fish, from Old English fiscian, from Proto-West Germanic fiskōn, from Proto-Germanic fiskōną, from Proto-Germanic -ōną, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé- — he, she.

towfish (English): An object towed behind a vessel in the water,...

Definitions

  1. An object towed behind a vessel in the water,...

Ancestry of “towfish”, step by step

towfish traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Fish

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishFishThe constellation and zodiacal sign Pisces
2Old Englishfiscianto fish
3Proto-West Germanicfiskōnto fish, to catch fish
4Proto-Germanicfiskōnąto fish, to catch fish
5Proto-Germanic-ōnąCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
6Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
7Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-
9Chichewaiyehe, she

via English tow

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishtowTo pull something behind one using a line or...
2Middle Englishtowen
3Old Englishtogianto tow
4Proto-Germanictugōnąto pull, tow
5Proto-Indo-Europeandewk-to pull, to draw; to lead
Every word from Chichewa iyeEvery word from Proto-Indo-European -yétiEvery word from Proto-Germanic -ōną
towfish — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer