English
gastly
Gastly comes from Middle English gastly.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gastly
- Englishearliest quotation 1574same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gastly
- Englishearliest quotation 1574same form
Earliest quotation: 1574, A. G. attributed to Anthony Gilby or Art, The Testament of Simeon Made to His Children at Hys Death Co: “[E]uen in ſléepe ſome ſpice of imagined malice gnaweth…”
Formed from gast ‘to frighten’ + -ly
Proto-Germanic *gaistijaną
Proto-West Germanic *gaistijan
Old English gǣstan ‘to frighten’
Middle English gasten ‘to frighten, terrify’
English gast
Every English word from Middle English gastly
Today it means
adj —
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English gastly / gastly