Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “klemmen” come from?

klemmen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German klemmen, from Proto-Germanic *klammjan, from Proto-Germanic klamjaną — to clamp; to squeeze.

Ancestry of “klemmen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanklemmen—
2Proto-Germanic*klammjan—
3Proto-Germanicklamjanąto clamp; to squeeze

Words derived from “klemmen”

  • klemme
  • Klemmbrett
  • verklemmen
  • klemmen
  • verklemmt
  • beklemmen
  • klemar
  • klemegar
Every word from Proto-Germanic klamjaną →