Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “waver” come from?

Waver comes from Middle English waveren, from Old Norse vafra, whose original sense remains unattested.

waver (English): To sway back and forth; to totter or reel; To...

Definitions

  1. To sway back and forth; to totter or reel; To...

Ancestry of “waver”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwaveTo move back and forth repeatedly and somewhat...
2Middle EnglishwaweA wave; Any sort of flowing or spurting motion;...
3Old Englishwǣġa weight; a tool for weighing, balance, scale
4Proto-Germanicwēgazwave; sea
5Proto-Indo-Europeanweǵʰ-to bring; to transport

Words derived from “waver”

  • wavering
  • unwavering
  • unwaveringly
  • waveringly
  • wavery
  • waverer
  • nonwavering
  • waveringness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European weǵʰ- →