Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “abak” come from?

abak (Middle English) comes from Old English onbæc, from Old English on, from Proto-West Germanic ana, from Proto-Germanic *an, from Proto-Germanic ana, from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- — on, onto.

Ancestry of “abak”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishonbæc—
2Old Englishonon, in, at, among; from
3Proto-West Germanicanaon
4Proto-Germanic*an—
5Proto-Germanicanaon, at; on, onto; ana
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

Words derived from “abak”

  • aback
  • abackward
  • back-
  • take aback
  • taken aback
  • bac-
  • bak-
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →