Etymograph

English

betide

Betide comes from Middle English tyden ‘to come about, happen, occur’, from Old English tīd ‘time in general’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *deh₂y- ‘to share, divide’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deh₂y-‘to share, divide’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*déh₂itis‘division, section’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*tīdiz‘time’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*tīdi‘time’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150tīd‘time in general’
  6. Old English, derivedc. 450–1150tīdan‘to befall, betide, happen’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tyden‘to come about, happen, occur’
  8. Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500bityden
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1579betide

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deh₂y-‘to share, divide’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*déh₂itis‘division, section’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*tīdiz‘time’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*tīdi‘time’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150tīd‘time in general’
  6. Old English, derivedc. 450–1150tīdan‘to befall, betide, happen’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tyden‘to come about, happen, occur’
  8. Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500bityden
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1579betide

Earliest quotation: 1579, Immeritô pseudonym; Edmund Spenser, Nouember. Ægloga Vndecima.: “Why wayle we then? why weary we the Gods…”

Formed from be- + tide ‘(obsolete) to happen, occur’

Proto-Indo-European *h₁epi ‘at, near’

Proto-Indo-European *h₁pi

Proto-Germanic *bi ‘near, by’

Proto-Germanic *bi-

Proto-West Germanic *bi-

English be-

Proto-Indo-European *deh₂y- ‘to share, divide’

…

Proto-Germanic *tīdiz ‘time’

Proto-West Germanic *tīdi ‘time’

Old English tīd ‘time in general’

Middle English tyde ‘a time (period), season’

English tide

The story

From Middle English bityden [and other forms]; from bi- (prefix forming verbs, usually with a completive, figurative, or intensive sense) + tyden (‘to come about, happen, occur; to befall, become of, happen to (someone); to be the fate of (someone); to await (someone); to fare, get along’); tyden is derived from Old English tīdan (‘to befall, betide, happen’), related to tīd (‘time; season; hour’) (both ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *deh₂- (‘to divide, share’) or its extended form *deh₂-y-, whence *dh₂ítis (‘time’)) + -an (suffix forming the infinitive of most verbs). The English word is analysable as be- + tide (‘(obsolete) to happen, occur’).

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *deh₂y- ‘to share, divide’

time, till, demon, til, tease, daemon, tass, daimon, 24 more

through Old English tīd ‘time in general’

tidbit, 3 more

Today it means

verb Often used in a prediction (chiefly in woe betide) or a wish: to happen to (someone or something); to befall.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *deh₂y- / betide

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