Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “pound” come from?

pound (Middle English) comes from Old English pund, from Proto-Germanic *pund, from Proto-Germanic pundą, from Latin pondus, from Proto-Italic pondos, from Proto-Indo-European (s)pénd-os, from Proto-Indo-European (s)pend- — to stretch.

pound (Middle English): A measurement for weight, most notably the Tower...

Definitions

  1. A measurement for weight, most notably the Tower...

Ancestry of “pound”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishpundpound
2Proto-Germanic*pund—
3Proto-Germanicpundąpound
4Latinpondusweight; weight of a pound; heaviness, weight of a...
5Proto-Italicpondos—
6Proto-Indo-European(s)pénd-os—
7Proto-Indo-European(s)pend-to stretch

Words derived from “pound”

  • pound
  • pounder
  • impoundment
  • poundage
  • impound
  • poundal
  • poundmaster
  • poundkeeper
  • impounder
  • tenpounder
  • kilopound
  • poundable
  • impoundage
  • impoundable
  • poundmaker
  • shorepound
  • geepound
  • pound cake
  • quarter-pounder
  • multipound
  • panqué
  • 磅
  • 鎊
  • pauna
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)pend- →