Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “schief” come from?

schief (Middle High German) comes from Middle Low German schêf, from Old Saxon skêf, from Proto-West Germanic *skaib, from Proto-Germanic skaibaz, from Proto-Indo-European skeh₂iwo-.

Ancestry of “schief”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Low Germanschêf—
2Old Saxonskêf—
3Proto-West Germanic*skaib—
4Proto-Germanicskaibazcrooked
5Proto-Indo-Europeanskeh₂iwo-—

Words derived from “schief”

  • schief
  • schif
Every word from Proto-Indo-European skeh₂iwo- →