Where does “wandering” come from?

Wandering comes from Old English -ing (a suffix forming gerunds and participles) attached to the verb wander, which derives from Proto-Germanic windaną, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wendʰ-.

wandering (English): Which wanders; travelling from place to place;...

Definitions

  1. Which wanders; travelling from place to place;...

Ancestry of “wandering”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-ingUsed to form gerunds, a type of verbal nouns,...
2Old English-ingForming nouns from verbs, indicating action,...
3Old English-tūnhomestead, village, town
4Old Englishtūnenclosure, yard; place; dwelling
5Proto-West Germanictūnfence
6Proto-Germanictūnąfence; enclosure
7Gaulishdunumfort; hill, hillfort
8Proto-Celticdūnomstronghold, rampart
9Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

Words derived from “wandering

Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂-Every word from Proto-Celtic dūnomEvery word from English -ing
wandering — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer