Where does “trying” come from?
Trying comes from Old English -ing (verbal suffix) attached to a verb derived from Latin terere (to rub or wear away), itself from Proto-Indo-European terh₁-.
trying (English): Difficult to endure; arduous; Irritating,...
Definitions
- Difficult to endure; arduous; Irritating,...
Ancestry of “trying”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | -ing | Used to form gerunds, a type of verbal nouns,... |
| 2 | Old English | -ing | Forming nouns from verbs, indicating action,... |
| 3 | Old English | -tūn | — |
| 4 | Old English | tūn | enclosure, yard; place; dwelling |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | tūn | fence |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | tūną | fence; enclosure |
| 7 | Gaulish | dunum | fort; hill, hillfort |
| 8 | Proto-Celtic | dūnom | stronghold, rampart |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |
Words derived from “trying”