Where does “Ehrgeiz” come from?
Ehrgeiz (German) comes from German geiz, from Middle High German gīze, from Middle High German gīzen, from Middle High German gīt, from Old High German gītisōn, from Proto-West Germanic gīdisōn, from Proto-West Germanic gīd, from Proto-Germanic gīda- — to yearn for; to wish for; desire, wait for.
Ehrgeiz (German): ambition
Ancestry of “Ehrgeiz”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | German | geiz | singular imperative of geizen; first-person... |
| 2 | Middle High German | gīze | greed |
| 3 | Middle High German | gīzen | — |
| 4 | Middle High German | gīt | greed |
| 5 | Old High German | gītisōn | — |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | gīdisōn | to be greedy for, to covet |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | gīd | greed, avarice |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | gīda- | greed, desire |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰeidʰ-o- | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰeydʰ- | to yearn for; to wish for; desire, wait for |