Where does “gear” come from?

gear (Manx) comes from Old Irish gairid, from Old Irish gáir, from Proto-Celtic gāris, from Proto-Indo-European ǵeh₂r- — to shout, cry; exclamation; voice; to call, cry.

gear (Manx): to laugh, chuckle; sharp, keen; sour, acid

Definitions

  1. to laugh, chuckle; sharp, keen; sour, acid

Ancestry of “gear”, step by step

gear traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old Irish gairid

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Irishgairidto call
2Old Irishgáir—
3Proto-Celticgāris—
4Proto-Indo-Europeanǵeh₂r-to shout, cry; exclamation; voice; to call, cry

via Old Irish gér

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Irishgérsharp; keen, intense
2Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂ḱróssharp
3Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂eḱ-sharp

Words derived from “gear”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵeh₂r- →Every word from Proto-Celtic gāris →Every word from Old Irish gáir →