Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “picchen” come from?

picchen (Middle English) comes from Middle English pikken, from Old English piccian, from Proto-West Germanic pikkōn, from Proto-Germanic pikkōną, from Proto-Indo-European bew- — "low-pitch humming noise".

Ancestry of “picchen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishpikkenAlternative form of piken; to pick, pierce; to...
2Old Englishpiccian—
3Proto-West Germanicpikkōnto peck, strike
4Proto-Germanicpikkōnąto pick, peck, prick
5Proto-Indo-Europeanbew-"low-pitch humming noise"

Words derived from “picchen”

  • pitchfork
  • pitchforklike
  • pitchforkful
  • pichfork
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bew- →