Where does “gast” come from?

gast (Middle English) comes from Middle English gasten, from Old English gǣstan, from Proto-West Germanic *gaistijan, from Proto-Germanic gaistijaną.

Ancestry of “gast”, step by step

gast traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English gasten

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishgastento terrify
2Old Englishgǣstanto gast, frighten, afflict, torment; to torment,...
3Proto-West Germanic*gaistijan—
4Proto-Germanicgaistijaną—

via Old English gāst

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishgāstbreath, soul, spirit, ghost, being
2Proto-West Germanicgaistghost, spirit
3Proto-Germanicgaistazterror, fear; spirit, ghost; mind
4Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰeysd-anger, agitation

Words derived from “gast”

Every word from Proto-Germanic gaistijaną →Every word from Proto-West Germanic *gaistijan →Every word from Old English gǣstan →