Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “sweorcan” come from?

sweorcan (Old English) comes from Proto-Germanic swerkaną, from Proto-Indo-European swerg-, from Proto-Indo-European sēr-, from Proto-Indo-European ser- — to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together.

sweorcan (Old English): to darken, be obscured; to become troubled,...

Definitions

  1. to darken, be obscured; to become troubled,...

Ancestry of “sweorcan”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Germanicswerkanąto darken, be obscured
2Proto-Indo-Europeanswerg-—
3Proto-Indo-Europeansēr-—
4Proto-Indo-Europeanser-to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ser- →