Where does “were” come from?
were (Middle High German) comes from Old High German werī, from Proto-Germanic warīniz, from Proto-Germanic -īniz, from Proto-Germanic -niz, from Proto-Indo-European -nis.
Ancestry of “were”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old High German | werī | — |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | warīniz | warding off, defense |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | -īniz | Forms abstract nouns from weak class 1 verbs |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | -niz | Forms abstract nouns from verbal roots and stems |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | -nis | — |
Words derived from “were”