Where does “overtaken” come from?
overtaken (Middle English) comes from Middle English overnimen, from Old English oferniman, from Old English ōfer, from Proto-West Germanic obar, from Proto-Germanic uber, from Proto-Indo-European upér, from Proto-Indo-European upó, from Proto-Indo-European h₃ewp-.
Ancestry of “overtaken”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | overnimen | — |
| 2 | Old English | oferniman | to take by force or violence |
| 3 | Old English | ōfer | riverbank, seashore, brink, edge, margin, border |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | obar | over, above |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | uber | over; over, above |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | upér | above; over |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | upó | under, below |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃ewp- | — |