Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “withal” come from?

Withal comes from Middle English withal, of uncertain origin and meaning.

withal (English): 1844, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Rappaccini's...

Definitions

  1. 1844, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Rappaccini's...

Ancestry of “withal”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishwithal—
2Middle Englishwiþwith
3Old Englishwiþagainst, opposite; along, towards; with
4Old Englishwiþertoward, against; again, against; against, in...
5Proto-West Germanicwiþrtoward, against
6Proto-Germanicwiþrątoward, against
7Proto-Indo-Europeanwī-tero-further apart
8Proto-Indo-Europeanwiapart, asunder; away from, against

Words derived from “withal”

  • wherewithal
  • therewithal
Every word from Proto-Indo-European wi →