Where does “triggerman” come from?
triggerman (English) comes from English trigger, from Dutch trekker, from Dutch trekken, from Middle Dutch trecken, from Old Dutch trecken, from Proto-West Germanic *trakkjan, from Proto-Germanic trakjaną, from Proto-Germanic -janą — he, she.
triggerman (English): A hired gunman; a hitman
Definitions
- A hired gunman; a hitman
Ancestry of “triggerman”, step by step
triggerman traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English trigger
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | trigger | A finger-operated lever used to fire a gun; A... |
| 2 | Dutch | trekker | puller; trigger; tractor |
| 3 | Dutch | trekken | to pull, to draw; to manage, to have the strength... |
| 4 | Middle Dutch | trecken | to pull or draw to oneself; to go to another... |
| 5 | Old Dutch | trecken | — |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | *trakkjan | to drag |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | trakjaną | to drag |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | -janą | Derives denominatives from nouns and factitives... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 11 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via English MAN
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | MAN | Initialism of Metropolitan Area Network |
| 2 | English | manual | A handbook; A booklet that instructs on the usage... |
| 3 | Middle English | manuel | — |
| 4 | Anglo-Norman | manuel | manual; done with the hands; handle; manual;... |
| 5 | Old French | manual | — |
| 6 | Latin | manuālis | hand |
| 7 | Latin | manus | hand; bravery, valor; violence, fighting |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | manus | hand |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | man- | human being; man; hand |