Where does “gate” come from?

gate (Middle English) comes from Old English ġeat, from Old French gaut, from Proto-West Germanic walþu, from Proto-Germanic walþuz, from Proto-Indo-European wel- — to see.

gate (Middle English): An entryway or entrance to a settlement or...

Definitions

  1. An entryway or entrance to a settlement or...

Ancestry of “gate”, step by step

gate traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English ġeat

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishġeatgate; a gate, door
2Old Frenchgautforest, woods, woodland
3Proto-West Germanicwalþuforest
4Proto-Germanicwalþuzforest
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwel-to see

via Old Norse gáta

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsegátariddle
2Proto-Germanicgatwǭstreet, passage
3Proto-Indo-Europeangʰodweh₂—

Words derived from “gate”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European wel- →Every word from Proto-Germanic walþuz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic walþu →