Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “wif” come from?

wif (Old English) comes from Proto-West Germanic wīb, from Proto-Germanic wībą, from Proto-Indo-European gʰwíh₂bʰ- — shame, pudenda.

wif (Old English): wife; woman, female, lady, wife; female

Definitions

  1. wife; woman, female, lady, wife; female

Ancestry of “wif”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-West Germanicwībwoman; wife
2Proto-Germanicwībąwoman; wife
3Proto-Indo-Europeangʰwíh₂bʰ-shame, pudenda

Words derived from “wif”

  • women
  • wife
  • hussy
  • womenfolk
  • womyn
  • fishwife
  • womenkind
  • wifey
  • alewife
  • womenswear
  • henwife
  • wifebeater
  • spaewife
  • antiwomen
  • wifelike
  • hussif
  • wifeswapping
  • womenless
  • superwife
  • nonwife
  • wifish
  • unwifelike
  • stepwife
  • wifelet
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gʰwíh₂bʰ- →