Where does “bei” come from?

bei (German) comes from Middle High German bī, from Old High German bī, from Proto-West Germanic bī, from Proto-Germanic bi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂m̥bʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂n̥tbʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énts, from Proto-Indo-European h₂ent- — on, onto.

bei (German): by; near; at; for; at; in

Definitions

  1. by; near; at; for; at; in

Ancestry of “bei”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High German
2Old High Germanby, at
3Proto-West Germanicby, at; near, around
4Proto-Germanicbiby, at; near, around
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂m̥bʰiaround, on either side of, about; in exchange...
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂n̥tbʰi
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éntsforehead; front
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂ent-face; forehead; front
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

Words derived from “bei

Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en-