Where does “wähnen” come from?
wähnen (German) comes from Middle High German wænen, from Old High German wānen, from Proto-Germanic *wānijan, from Proto-Germanic wēnijaną, from Proto-Germanic -janą, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé-, from Chichewa iye — he, she.
wähnen (German): to suppose, expect, believe, imagine, ween
Definitions
- to suppose, expect, believe, imagine, ween
Ancestry of “wähnen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle High German | wænen | to suppose, to believe |
| 2 | Old High German | wānen | to suppose, to hope, to guess |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | *wānijan | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | wēnijaną | to hope, to expect; to believe, to imagine |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -janą | Derives denominatives from nouns and factitives... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 8 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |