English
drunken
Drunken comes from Old English druncnian ‘to drown’, from Proto-Germanic *drunkanōną ‘to get drunk’, and ultimately from *drunkanaz.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*drunkanaz‘drunk’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*drunkanōną‘to get drunk’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150druncnian‘to drown’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500dronknen
- Englishearliest quotation 1917drunken
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*drunkanaz‘drunk’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*drunkanōną‘to get drunk’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150druncnian‘to drown’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500dronknen
- Englishearliest quotation 1917drunken
Earliest quotation: 1917, Patience Worth, The Sorry Tale: “Yea, upon a stoned couch and drunkened unto death…”
Every English word from Proto-Germanic *drunkanaz
Today it means
verb To make or become drunk or drunken; to intoxicate.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *drunkanaz / drunken