English
eat
Eat comes from Middle English eten ‘to eat, devour’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ed-‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁édti‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*etaną‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*etan‘to eat’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150etan‘to eat’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500eten‘to eat’
- Englishearliest quotation 1611eat
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ed-‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁édti‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*etaną‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*etan‘to eat’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150etan‘to eat’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500eten‘to eat’
- Englishearliest quotation 1611eat
Earliest quotation: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “But meate commendeth vs not to God: for neither…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- ‘to eat’
anna, ana, fret, anodyne, esca, 20 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁édti ‘to eat’
obesity, edible, phage, 11 more
through Proto-Germanic *etaną ‘to eat’
through Old English etan ‘to eat’
through Middle English eten ‘to eat, devour’
Another origin of eat
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ed-‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ētą‘food, thing to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*ātreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150ǣt‘food, eating’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ete‘eating’
- Englishtodayeat
Today it means
verb To consume (something solid or semi-solid, usually food) by putting it into the mouth and swallowing it.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- / eat