Where does “trapdoor” come from?
Trapdoor comes from English trap and door, where door derives from Old English dora, Swedish trapp, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European dʰwer- meaning an opening or entrance.
trapdoor (English): A hinged or sliding door set into a floor or...
Definitions
- A hinged or sliding door set into a floor or...
Ancestry of “trapdoor”, step by step
trapdoor traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English trap
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | trap | A machine or other device designed to catch (and sometimes kill) animals, either by holding them in a container, or by catching hold of part of the body |
| 2 | Middle English | trappe | trap |
| 3 | Old English | træppe | a trap |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | trap- | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | dreb- | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | der- | to split, to separate; to tear, to crack, to... |