Where does “drone” come from?

drone (Middle English) comes from Old English drān, from Proto-West Germanic drānu, from Proto-Germanic drēnuz, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreh₁n-.

Ancestry of “drone”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishdrāndrone
2Proto-West Germanicdrānudrone, male bee
3Proto-Germanicdrēnuzmale bee or wasp; drone
4Proto-Indo-European*dʰreh₁n-—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreh₁n- →Every word from Proto-Germanic drēnuz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic drānu →