Where does “уж” come from?

уж (Russian) comes from Old East Slavic ѫжь, from Proto-Slavic ǫžь, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *ángis, from Proto-Indo-European h₂éngʷʰis — snake.

уж (Russian): already; grass snake

Definitions

  1. already; grass snake

Ancestry of “уж”, step by step

уж traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old East Slavic ѫжь

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old East Slavicѫжьrope
2Proto-Slavicǫžьsnake
3Proto-Balto-Slavic*ángissnake
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éngʷʰissnake

via Russian уже́

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Russianуже́already
2Proto-Slavicǫži—

Words derived from “уж”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂éngʷʰis →Every word from Proto-Balto-Slavic *ángis →Every word from Proto-Slavic ǫžь →
уж — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer