Where does “smelt” come from?

smelt (Old English) comes from Proto-West Germanic *smelt, from Proto-Germanic smeltaz, from Proto-Germanic smeltaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)meld- — to soften, to melt.

smelt (Old English): smelt a fish

Definitions

  1. smelt a fish

Ancestry of “smelt”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-West Germanic*smeltsmelt
2Proto-Germanicsmeltazsmelt
3Proto-Germanicsmeltanąto melt
4Proto-Indo-European(s)meld-to soften, to melt

Words derived from “smelt”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)meld- →Every word from Proto-Germanic smeltaną →Every word from Proto-Germanic smeltaz →