Where does “whisper” come from?

Whisper comes from Middle English whisperen, from Old English hwisprian, from Proto-Germanic hwisprōną, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root ḱwey-.

whisper (English): The act of speaking in a quiet voice, especially,...

Definitions

  1. The act of speaking in a quiet voice, especially,...

Ancestry of “whisper”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishwhisperen—
2Old Englishhwisprianto whisper
3Proto-Germanichwisprōnąto whistle, hiss, whisper
4Proto-Indo-Europeanḱweys-to hiss, whistle, whisper

Words derived from “whisper”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱweys- →Every word from Proto-Germanic hwisprōną →Every word from Old English hwisprian →