Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “hire” come from?

hire (Middle English) comes from Old English hire, from Proto-Germanic hezōi, from Proto-Germanic *hiz, from Proto-Indo-European ḱe, from Middle English kyt, from German kitt, from Old High German kuti, from Proto-West Germanic kwidu — to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,...

hire (Middle English): Third-person singular feminine genitive...

Definitions

  1. Third-person singular feminine genitive...

Ancestry of “hire”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishhiregenitive/dative of hēo
2Proto-Germanichezōidative singular feminine of *hiz
3Proto-Germanic*hiz—
4Proto-Indo-EuropeanḱeDeictic particle, here; Post-positional...
5Middle Englishkyt—
6Germankitt—
7Old High Germankuti—
8Proto-West Germanickwidugum, resin
9Proto-Germanickweduzresin
10Proto-Indo-Europeangʷet-resin, gum; to say, speak
11Proto-Indo-Europeangū-to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,...

Words derived from “hire”

  • here
  • hair
  • hers
  • hire
  • heir
  • hare
  • hereby
  • herein
  • hairy
  • Hare
  • whore
  • heiress
  • hereinafter
  • hoary
  • haircut
  • hearse
  • hoar
  • hereabouts
  • hereunder
  • hairline
  • hairpin
  • hereinbefore
  • har
  • hairless
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gū- →