Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “world” come from?

World derives from Middle English world, from Old English woruld, from Proto-Germanic weraldiz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning age or lifetime.

world (English): Human collective existence; existence in general;...

Definitions

  1. Human collective existence; existence in general;...

Ancestry of “world”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishworldThe world, the planet; A dimension, realm, or...
2Old Englishweoroldworld
3Proto-West Germanicweraldiworld
4Proto-Germanicweraldizlifetime, worldly existence; mankind; world
5Proto-Germanicwerazman; husband
6Proto-Indo-EuropeanwiHrósman; husband; warrior, hero
7Proto-Indo-Europeanweyh₁-to chase, pursue; to suppress, persecute

Words derived from “world”

  • worldwide
  • underworld
  • netherworld
  • worldling
  • Otherworld
  • McWorld
  • afterworld
  • dreamworld
  • homeworld
  • artworld
  • microworld
  • gameworld
  • transworld
  • nanoworld
  • storyworld
  • worldsheet
  • cyberworld
  • worldmaking
  • subworld
  • worldless
  • worldhood
  • overworld
  • macroworld
  • worldlessness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European weyh₁- →