Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “steep” come from?

steep (Middle English) comes from Old English stēap, from Proto-West Germanic *staup.

Ancestry of “steep”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishstēapa stoup, beaker, drinking vessel, cup, flagon;...
2Proto-West Germanic*staup—

Words derived from “steep”

  • steep
  • steeply
  • steeper
  • steepness
  • steepy
  • steepen
  • steepish
  • oversteep
  • steepeth
  • insteep
  • steepiness
Every word from Proto-West Germanic *staup →