Where does “lōs” come from?

lōs (German) comes from Old High German lōs, from Proto-West Germanic laus, from Proto-Germanic lausaz, from Proto-Indo-European lewH- — louse.

Ancestry of “lōs”, step by step

lōs traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old High German lōs

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanlōsloose; free; lacking; sly, deceitful
2Proto-West Germaniclausloose, free
3Proto-Germaniclausazloose, free; empty, devoid; false, untrue
4Proto-Indo-EuropeanlewH-louse

via Middle High German lōz

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanlōz—
2Old High Germanhlōzfate
3Proto-Germanic*hlaut—
4Proto-Germanic*hlautazlot, share

Words derived from “lōs”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European lewH- →Every word from Proto-Germanic lausaz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic laus →