Where does “mæst” come from?
mæst (Old English) comes from Old Norse mestr, from Proto-Germanic maistaz, from Proto-Germanic mikilaz, from Proto-Indo-European meǵa-.
mæst (Old English): superlative degree of miċel: biggest, most; most;...
Definitions
- superlative degree of miċel: biggest, most; most;...
Ancestry of “mæst”, step by step
mæst traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Old Norse mestr
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Norse | mestr | superlative degree of mikill; most; largest |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | maistaz | superlative degree of *mikilaz; most |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | mikilaz | great, large; much, many |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | meǵa- | — |
via Germanic *mast
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germanic | *mast | — |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | mastaz | rod, pole, perch; bar, plank; mast |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | mazdos | pole, mast; plank, board, flooring; perch, pole,... |
via Proto-West Germanic *maist
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-West Germanic | *maist | — |