Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “mire” come from?

mire (Middle English) comes from French mire, from Italian mira, from Italian mirare, from Latin mīror, from Latin mīrus, from Proto-Italic smeiros, from Proto-Indo-European sméyros, from Proto-Indo-European smey- — to smile; to smear, stroke, wipe, rub; to be...

mire (Middle English): Marshy or swampy land; a mire or peat; A region...

Definitions

  1. Marshy or swampy land; a mire or peat; A region...

Ancestry of “mire”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchmireaim; foresight; target
2Italianmiraaim; sight; aim, goal, purpose, design,...
3Italianmirareto aim, to take aim, to sight, to point; to...
4Latinmīror—
5Latinmīrus—
6Proto-Italicsmeiros—
7Proto-Indo-Europeansméyroslaughing, smiling
8Proto-Indo-Europeansmey-to smile; to smear, stroke, wipe, rub; to be...

Words derived from “mire”

  • mire
  • quagmire
  • pismire
  • enmired
  • quagmired
  • enmire
  • mireland
  • quagmiry
  • quagmirical
  • pickmire
  • pismirism
  • myre
  • pissemyre
  • pismire
  • myren
Every word from Proto-Indo-European smey- →