Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “frīen” come from?

frīen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German frīon, from Proto-Germanic frijōną, from Proto-Indo-European prāy- — to like, love.

Ancestry of “frīen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanfrīon—
2Proto-Germanicfrijōnąto love; to free; to like
3Proto-Indo-Europeanprāy-to like, love

Words derived from “frīen”

  • freien
  • Freier
  • frajer
  • frajer
  • frajer
  • fraier
  • freien
  • frei
Every word from Proto-Indo-European prāy- →