Where does “mite” come from?
mite (Middle English) comes from Old English mīte, from Proto-Germanic mītǭ, from Proto-Germanic maitaną, from Proto-Indo-European mēi-.
Ancestry of “mite”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | mīte | mite, tiny insect |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | mītǭ | biting insect; literally, cutter; biting insect |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | maitaną | to cut, hew; to cut off, sever |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | mēi- | — |
Words derived from “mite”