Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “sweyen” come from?

sweyen (Middle English) comes from Old Norse sveigja, from Proto-Germanic swaigijaną, from Proto-Indo-European *sweh₁-.

Ancestry of “sweyen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsesveigjato bend, bow; bend
2Proto-Germanicswaigijaną—
3Proto-Indo-European*sweh₁-—

Words derived from “sweyen”

  • sway
  • swaying
  • swayback
  • swaybacked
  • swayeth
  • asway
  • swayingly
  • swayer
  • unswayable
  • unswaying
  • oversway
  • swayest
  • swayable
  • antisway
  • swayful
  • countersway
  • swey
  • upsway
Every word from Proto-Indo-European *sweh₁- →