English
gild
Gild comes from Old English gyldan ‘to gild, to cover with a thin layer of gold’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- ‘green, yellow’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰelh₃-‘green, yellow’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gulþą‘gold’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gulþijaną‘to gild, cover with gold’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gulþijan‘to gild, cover with gold’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gyldan‘to gild, to cover with a thin layer of gold’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gilden
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1598gild
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰelh₃-‘green, yellow’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gulþą‘gold’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gulþijaną‘to gild, cover with gold’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gulþijan‘to gild, cover with gold’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gyldan‘to gild, to cover with a thin layer of gold’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gilden
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1598gild
Earliest quotation: c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice: “I will make fast the doors, and gild myself…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- ‘green, yellow’
fell, yellow, chlorine, gall, cholera, felon, gullible, yolk, glib, choline, zloty, chlorella, 27 more
through Proto-Germanic *gulþą ‘gold’
through Middle English gilden
Today it means
verb To cover with a thin layer of gold; to cover with gold leaf.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- / gild