English
bewrite
Bewrite comes from Old English bewrītan ‘to write, record, copy’, from Proto-West Germanic *wrītan ‘to carve’, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *wrītaną.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*wrītaną‘to scratch, carve’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*wrītan‘to carve’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*biwrītan‘to write down’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150bewrītan‘to write, record, copy’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500bewriten
- Englishearliest quotation 1838bewrite
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*wrītaną‘to scratch, carve’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*wrītan‘to carve’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*biwrītan‘to write down’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150bewrītan‘to write, record, copy’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500bewriten
- Englishearliest quotation 1838bewrite
Earliest quotation: 1838, The Yale literary magazine: “I vow and purpose, here in the presence of…”
Formed from be- ‘about, over’ + write
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 *wrey- ‘to rip’
Proto-Germanic *wrītaną ‘to carve’
Proto-West Germanic *wrītan ‘to scratch’
Old English wrītan ‘to write’
Middle English writen ‘to write’
English write
Linked words
through Proto-West Germanic *wrītan ‘to carve’
Today it means
verb To write about; describe.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *wrītaną / bewrite