Etymology Explorer › Finnish

Where does “selitellä” come from?

selitellä (Finnish) comes from Finnish selittää, from Finnish selitä, from Finnish selkeä, from Proto-Finnic selkedä — clear.

selitellä (Finnish): To make excuses for, explain away

Definitions

  1. To make excuses for, explain away

Ancestry of “selitellä”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishselittääto explain; to explicate
2Finnishselitäto clear; Indicative present connegative form of...
3Finnishselkeäclear, sunny; Up to 1/8 covered by clouds; clear
4Proto-Finnicselkedäclear
Every word from Proto-Finnic selkedä →