Where does “whistleberries” come from?
whistleberries (English) comes from English berries, from English berry, from Middle English berye, from Old English berġe, from Proto-West Germanic baʀi, from Proto-Germanic bazją, from Proto-Indo-European bʰeh₂-, from Proto-Indo-European bʰeh₂-s-ri-.
whistleberries (English): baked beans
Ancestry of “whistleberries”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | berries | plural of berry; Third-person singular simple... |
| 2 | English | berry | A small succulent fruit, of any one of many... |
| 3 | Middle English | berye | berry, fruit; grape |
| 4 | Old English | berġe | — |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | baʀi | berry |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | bazją | berry |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰeh₂- | to shine, glow light; to speak, say |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰeh₂-s-ri- | — |