Where does “whalesucker” come from?

whalesucker (English) comes from English sucker, from English suck, from Middle English souken, from Old English sūcan, from Proto-West Germanic sūkan, from Proto-Germanic sūkaną, from Proto-Indo-European sug-, from Proto-Indo-European sew- — to press out, extract; juice; liquid, rain; to...

whalesucker (English): A tropical species of remora, Remora australis,...

Definitions

  1. A tropical species of remora, Remora australis,...

Ancestry of “whalesucker”, step by step

whalesucker traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English sucker

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsuckerA person or animal that sucks, especially a...
2EnglishsuckAn instance of drawing something into one's mouth...
3Middle EnglishsoukenTo suck; to extract or draw with the mouth; To...
4Old Englishsūcanto suck
5Proto-West Germanicsūkanto suck; to suckle
6Proto-Germanicsūkanąto suck; to suckle
7Proto-Indo-Europeansug-
8Proto-Indo-Europeansew-to press out, extract; juice; liquid, rain; to...

via English whale

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwhaleAny of several species of large sea mammals of...
2Middle EnglishwhalA whale or cetacean
3Old Englishhwæla whale
4Proto-West Germanichwalwhale
5Proto-Germanichwalazwhale, sheatfish
6Proto-Indo-European(s)kʷáloslarge fish; sheatfish
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sew-Every word from Proto-Indo-European sug-Every word from Proto-Germanic sūkaną