Where does “spy” come from?

spy (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Old Norse spýja, from Proto-Germanic spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)ptyēw- — to spit, vomit.

spy (Norwegian Bokmål): barf (US), vomit, spew

Definitions

  1. barf (US), vomit, spew

Ancestry of “spy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsespýjato spew, to vomit; vomit
2Proto-Germanicspīwanąto spew, to spit
3Proto-Indo-European(s)ptyēw-to spit, vomit
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)ptyēw- →Every word from Proto-Germanic spīwaną →Every word from Old Norse spýja →