Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “beswinken” come from?

beswinken (Middle English) comes from Old English beswincan, from Old English be, from Proto-West Germanic bī, from Proto-Germanic bi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂m̥bʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂n̥tbʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énts, from Proto-Indo-European h₂ent- — on, onto.

Ancestry of “beswinken”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishbeswincanto labour for or at, swink, toil, make with toil
2Old Englishbeby
3Proto-West Germanicbīby, at; near, around
4Proto-Germanicbiby, at; near, around
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂m̥bʰiaround, on either side of, about; in exchange...
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂n̥tbʰi—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éntsforehead; front
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂ent-face; forehead; front
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

Words derived from “beswinken”

  • beswink
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →