Where does “begnagan” come from?

begnagan (Old English) comes from Old English be, from Proto-West Germanic bī, from Proto-Germanic bi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂m̥bʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂n̥tbʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énts, from Proto-Indo-European h₂ent-, from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- — on, onto.

begnagan (Old English): to begnaw, gnaw

Definitions

  1. to begnaw, gnaw

Ancestry of “begnagan”, step by step

begnagan traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English be

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishbeby
2Proto-West Germanicbīby, at; near, around
3Proto-Germanicbiby, at; near, around
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂m̥bʰiaround, on either side of, about; in exchange...
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂n̥tbʰi—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éntsforehead; front
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂ent-face; forehead; front
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

via Old English gnagan

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishgnaganto gnaw
2Proto-West Germanicgnaganto gnaw
3Proto-Germanicgnaganąto gnaw
4Proto-Indo-Europeangʰnēgʰ-to gnaw, scratch

Words derived from “begnagan”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂ent- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂énts →