Where does “woo” come from?

woo (Middle English) comes from Old English wā, from Proto-West Germanic wai, from Proto-Germanic wai, from Proto-Indo-European wai — oh!; woe!.

woo (Middle English): woe, torment, anguish

Definitions

  1. woe, torment, anguish

Ancestry of “woo”, step by step

woo traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English wā

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishwāwoe
2Proto-West Germanicwaiwoe!, alas!
3Proto-Germanicwaiwoe! alas!
4Proto-Indo-Europeanwaioh!; woe!

via Old English wǣ

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishwǣ—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European wai →Every word from Proto-Germanic wai →Every word from Proto-West Germanic wai →