Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “infesten” come from?

infesten (Middle English) comes from Old French infester, from Latin īnfestō, from Latin infestus, from Latin infendo, from Latin fendo, from Proto-Indo-European gʷʰen-, from Proto-Indo-European bʰon-.

Ancestry of “infesten”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchinfesterto infest
2Latinīnfestō—
3Latininfestusunsafe, dangerous; hostile, aggressive;...
4Latininfendostrike
5LatinfendoI hit; I thrust
6Proto-Indo-Europeangʷʰen-to strike, slay, kill
7Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰon-—

Words derived from “infesten”

  • infest
  • disinfest
  • reinfest
  • infester
  • infestive
  • infesteth
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰon- →