Where does “brest” come from?

brest (Middle English) comes from Old English brēost, from Proto-West Germanic breust, from Proto-Germanic breustą, from Proto-Indo-European bʰrews- — to break.

brest (Middle English): chest, thorax; The breast in several contexts;...

Definitions

  1. chest, thorax; The breast in several contexts;...

Ancestry of “brest”, step by step

brest traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English brēost

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishbrēostchest
2Proto-West Germanicbreustbreast, chest
3Proto-Germanicbreustąbreast, chest
4Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰrews-to break

via Old Norse brestr

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsebrestrchink, crack; want, loss, lack
2Proto-Germanicbrestuzbreak; fracture; impairment; handicap
3Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰres‑to burst; break; crack; crackle

Words derived from “brest”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰrews- →