Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “woken” come from?

Woken derives from Old English wacu, from Proto-Germanic wakō, from Proto-Indo-European weǵ-, a root meaning to be lively or awake.

woken (English): past participle of wake

Definitions

  1. past participle of wake

Ancestry of “woken”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwokeAwake: conscious and not asleep; Alert, aware of...
2Englishwoken uppast participle of wake up
3Englishwake upTo awake; To awaken somebody; To become more...
4EnglishwakeTo stop sleeping; To make somebody stop sleeping;...
5Middle EnglishwakeAlternative form of woke
6Old Englishwacuwake, watch
7Old Englishfordford
8Proto-West Germanicfurduford
9Proto-Germanicfurduzford
10Proto-Indo-Europeanpértuscrossing
11Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
12Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “woken”

  • woke
  • unwoken
  • wokeness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →