Where does “wherebefore” come from?
wherebefore (English) comes from English before, from Middle English bifore, from Old English beforan, from Old English be-, from Old English hrōpan, from Proto-West Germanic hrōpan, from Proto-Germanic hrōpaną, from Proto-Indo-European ḱer- — army.
wherebefore (English): Before, or in front of, which
Definitions
- Before, or in front of, which
Ancestry of “wherebefore”, step by step
wherebefore traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English before
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | before | Earlier than; In front of in space; In the... |
| 2 | Middle English | bifore | before |
| 3 | Old English | beforan | before |
| 4 | Old English | be- | a productive prefix usually used to form verbs... |
| 5 | Old English | hrōpan | to shout, proclaim; cry out, scream, howl; to cry... |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | hrōpan | to cry out, to call, to shout |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | hrōpaną | to cry out, call, shout |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |
via English where
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | where | While on the contrary; although; whereas; At or... |
| 2 | Middle English | wher | where |
| 3 | Old English | hwǣr | where |
| 4 | Old English | -a | Ending forming adverbs; nominative masculine... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -ō | Creates feminine nouns from roots and stems |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -ô | -ly; Forms agent nouns, often from the zero-grade... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ō | Derives nouns from roots |