Where does “vergeblich” come from?
vergeblich (German) comes from German vergeben, from Middle High German vergeben, from Old High German fargeban, from Proto-Germanic fragebaną, from Proto-Germanic fra-, from Proto-Indo-European pro-, from Proto-Indo-European por-, from Proto-Indo-European per- — passed , crossed.
vergeblich (German): unavailing, useless
Ancestry of “vergeblich”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | German | vergeben | to forgive; to assign; to allocate; to give ; to... |
| 2 | Middle High German | vergeben | — |
| 3 | Old High German | fargeban | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | fragebaną | to give, grant; to forgive |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fra- | off, away; completely, fully, up |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |