Etymology Explorer › German

Where does “vergelten” come from?

vergelten (German) comes from Middle High German vergelten, from Old High German firgeltan, from Proto-Germanic frageldaną, from Proto-Germanic fra-, from Proto-Indo-European pro-, from Proto-Indo-European por-, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.

vergelten (German): to retaliate; to reward

Definitions

  1. to retaliate; to reward

Ancestry of “vergelten”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanvergelten—
2Old High Germanfirgeltan—
3Proto-Germanicfrageldanąto pay up; renumerate; to pay back; repay;...
4Proto-Germanicfra-off, away; completely, fully, up
5Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
7Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “vergelten”

  • Vergeltung
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →