Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “bolt” come from?

bolt (Old English) comes from Old English -tūn, from Old English tūn, from Proto-West Germanic tūn, from Proto-Germanic tūną, from Gaulish dunum, from Proto-Celtic dūnom, from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- — smoke; mist, haze.

bolt (Old English): bolt

Definitions

  1. bolt

Ancestry of “bolt”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old English-tūn—
2Old Englishtūnenclosure, yard; place; dwelling
3Proto-West Germanictūnfence
4Proto-Germanictūnąfence; enclosure
5Gaulishdunumfort; hill, hillfort
6Proto-Celticdūnomstronghold, rampart
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

Words derived from “bolt”

  • bold
  • bolt
  • Bolton
  • thunderbolt
  • Bolt
  • bolting
  • boldface
  • deadbolt
  • boldfaced
  • unbolt
  • bolter
  • eyebolt
  • bolthole
  • bolden
  • ringbolt
  • bolthead
  • firebolt
  • kingbolt
  • nonbold
  • boltlike
  • bolteth
  • semibold
  • boltless
  • rebolt
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- →