Where does “whale” come from?

Whale comes from Old English hwæl, which derives from Proto-Indo-European (s)kʷálos and the root wel-, meaning to turn or roll.

whale (English): Any of several species of large sea mammals of...

Definitions

  1. Any of several species of large sea mammals of...

Ancestry of “whale”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishwhalA whale or cetacean
2Old Englishhwæla whale
3Proto-West Germanichwalwhale
4Proto-Germanichwalazwhale, sheatfish
5Proto-Indo-European(s)kʷáloslarge fish; sheatfish

Words derived from “whale

Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kʷálosEvery word from Proto-Germanic hwalazEvery word from Proto-West Germanic hwal