Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “twi-” come from?

twi- (Middle English) comes from Old English twī-, from Proto-Germanic twī-, from Proto-Indo-European dwi-, from Proto-Indo-European dwóh₁ — two.

Ancestry of “twi-”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishtwī-two, double; double
2Proto-Germanictwī-two-, double-
3Proto-Indo-Europeandwi-two; apart, asunder
4Proto-Indo-Europeandwóh₁two

Words derived from “twi-”

  • twayblade
  • twinter
  • twiformed
  • twifoil
  • twi-gated
  • twi-tongued
  • twiblade
  • twi-headed
  • twi-reason
  • twi-minded
  • twi-mindedness
  • twithought
  • twiforked
  • twi-
  • twichild
  • twifallow
  • twifaced
  • twi-faced
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dwóh₁ →