Where does “whispering” come from?

Whispering derives from Middle English whisperen, Old English hwisprian, Proto-Germanic hwisprōną, and ultimately Proto-Indo-European ḱwey-, a root of uncertain original meaning.

whispering (English): present participle of whisper; that whispers;...

Definitions

  1. present participle of whisper; that whispers;...

Ancestry of “whispering”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwhisperThe act of speaking in a quiet voice, especially,...
2Middle Englishwhisperen—
3Old Englishhwisprianto whisper
4Proto-Germanichwisprōnąto whistle, hiss, whisper
5Proto-Indo-Europeanḱweys-to hiss, whistle, whisper

Words derived from “whispering”

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