Where does “trotter” come from?

Trotter comes from Middle English trottere, a word of uncertain origin and meaning.

trotter (English): In harness racing, a horse with a gait in which...

Definitions

  1. In harness racing, a horse with a gait in which...

Ancestry of “trotter”, step by step

trotter traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English trot

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishtrotAn ugly old woman, a hag; A gait of a four-legged...
2Middle Englishtrotten—
3Old Frenchtrotter—
4Medieval Latintrottoto go
5Frankishtrottōnto go, run
6Proto-Germanictradjanąto tread, trample
7Proto-Germanic-janąDerives denominatives from nouns and factitives...
8Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
9Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
10Chichewaiyehe, she

via Middle English trottere

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishtrottere—

Words derived from “trotter”

Every word from Chichewa iye →Every word from Proto-Germanic -janą →Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yéti →