Where does “underfangen” come from?
underfangen (Middle English) comes from Old English underfōn, from Old English fōn, from Old Norse fanga, from Middle Low German vangen, from Proto-Germanic fangōną, from Proto-Germanic -ōną, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti — he, she.
Ancestry of “underfangen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | underfōn | to receive, obtain, take, accept, take in,... |
| 2 | Old English | fōn | to take, grasp, seize, catch, capture, make... |
| 3 | Old Norse | fanga | to fetch, capture |
| 4 | Middle Low German | vangen | captive; to catch |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fangōną | to catch, capture |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -ōną | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 10 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
Words derived from “underfangen”