Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “cloud” come from?

cloud (Middle English) comes from Old English clūd, from Proto-West Germanic klūt, from Proto-Germanic klūtaz, from Proto-Indo-European gelewdos, from Indo-European *gel-.

cloud (Middle English): A small elevation; a hill; A clod, lump, or...

Definitions

  1. A small elevation; a hill; A clod, lump, or...

Ancestry of “cloud”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishclūdmass of stone, rock, boulder, hill; rock, boulder
2Proto-West Germanicklūt—
3Proto-Germanicklūtazlump, clod; boulder, rock; hill
4Proto-Indo-Europeangelewdos—
5Indo-European*gel-—

Words derived from “cloud”

  • cloud
  • thundercloud
  • cloudburst
  • cloudland
  • cloudlike
  • becloud
  • cloudlet
  • overcloud
  • cloudberry
  • stormcloud
  • dustcloud
  • cloudscape
  • raincloud
  • uncloud
  • cloudbuster
  • intracloud
  • cloudfree
  • cloudcapt
  • cloudage
  • cloudly
  • subcloud
  • cloudeth
  • intercloud
  • encloud
Every word from Indo-European *gel- →