Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “strengthenen” come from?

strengthenen (Middle English) comes from Middle English strengthen, from Middle English -en, from Old English -en, from Old Norse -inn, from Proto-Norse -īna-, from Proto-Germanic -īnaz, from Proto-Indo-European -iHnos, from Proto-Indo-European -no- — adjectival suffix.

Ancestry of “strengthenen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishstrengthento strengthen, fortify; to empower, to augment;...
2Middle English-enDenotes the past participle form when attached to...
3Old English-enmæġþ + API → mæġden; cocc + API → cycen, cicen;...
4Old Norse-innUsed to create adjectives from nouns, meaning...
5Proto-Norse-īna-—
6Proto-Germanic-īnaz-en
7Proto-Indo-European-iHnosCreates adjectives of materials
8Proto-Indo-European-no-adjectival suffix

Words derived from “strengthenen”

  • strengthen
  • strengthening
  • strengtheneth
  • strengthener
  • restrengthen
  • strengthenest
  • strengtheningly
  • strengthenable
  • enstrengthen
  • instrengthen
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -no- →