Where does “slīfen” come from?
slīfen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German slīfan, from Proto-West Germanic slīpan, from Proto-Germanic slīpaną, from Proto-Indo-European sley- — smooth; slick; sticky; slimy; to smear.
Ancestry of “slīfen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old High German | slīfan | — |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | slīpan | to grind, to whet, to sharpen |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | slīpaną | to slide; to grind; to sharpen |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | sley- | smooth; slick; sticky; slimy; to smear |
Words derived from “slīfen”