Where does “dismayen” come from?
dismayen (Middle English) comes from Anglo-Norman desmaiier, from Old French esmaier, from Vulgar Latin exmagare, from Latin magare, from Frankish magan, from Proto-Germanic maganą, from Proto-Indo-European (me)mógʰe, from Proto-Indo-European megʰ- — to be able.
Ancestry of “dismayen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Anglo-Norman | desmaiier | — |
| 2 | Old French | esmaier | to be frightened; to be scared; to frighten; to... |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | exmagare | to deprive of strength, to disable; deprive of... |
| 4 | Latin | magare | to enable; empower; to enable, empower |
| 5 | Frankish | magan | to be able, may |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | maganą | to be able, may |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | (me)mógʰe | to have power, to be able to |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | megʰ- | to be able |
Words derived from “dismayen”