Where does “lest” come from?
lest (Middle English) comes from Old English læste, from Proto-Germanic laistiz, from Proto-Indo-European leys- — to trace, to track.
Ancestry of “lest”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | læste | last |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | laistiz | — |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | leys- | to trace, to track |
Words derived from “lest”