Where does “Hilfsverb” come from?
Hilfsverb (German) comes from German Hilfe, from Middle High German hilfe, from Old High German hilfa, from Proto-Germanic hilpiz, from Proto-Germanic helpaną, from Proto-Indo-European ḱelb- — help.
Hilfsverb (German): auxiliary verb, helping verb
Definitions
- auxiliary verb, helping verb
Ancestry of “Hilfsverb”, step by step
Hilfsverb traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via German Hilfe
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Hilfe | help |
| 2 | Middle High German | hilfe | — |
| 3 | Old High German | hilfa | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | hilpiz | help |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | helpaną | to help |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱelb- | help |
via German Verb
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Verb | verb |
| 2 | Latin | verbum | word; proverb, saying; verb |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | λόγος | That which is said: word, sentence, speech,... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | λέγω | I put in order, arrange, gather; I choose, count,... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ- | to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to... |