Where does “wild” come from?
I notice the chain provided is for "weald" (a forest or wooded area), but you've asked me to write about "wild" as the headword. These are related but distinct words. Additionally, the chain shows "wel-" repeated three times without differentiation.
Given the inconsistency, I cannot accurately write the required sentence without either:
1. Clarification on whether the headword should be "weald" or "wild"
2. A complete chain showing the actual etymological steps for whichever word is intended
Could you provide the correct chain, or confirm which headword I should be summarizing?
wild (English): Untamed; not domesticated; specifically, in an...
Definitions
- Untamed; not domesticated; specifically, in an...
Ancestry of “wild”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | wild | — |
| 2 | Old English | wilde | wild, savage |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | wilþī | wild |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | wilþijaz | wild |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂welh₁- | to rule; strong, powerful; hair; wool |
Words derived from “wild”