Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “watchtower” come from?

Watchtower is a compound of English watch and English tow, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European dewk- meaning to lead or guide.

watchtower (English): An observation tower in which a lookout keeps...

Definitions

  1. An observation tower in which a lookout keeps...

Ancestry of “watchtower”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishTowerThe Tower of London, especially seen as a place...
2English-erA person or thing that does an action indicated...
3Middle English-eragentive suffix; agent noun suffix
4Old French-erAlternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;...
5Latin-āre—
6Proto-Italic-āōForms primarily denominative verbs
7Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
8Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
9Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
10Chichewaiyehe, she
Every word from Chichewa iye →