English
greaten
Greaten comes from Middle English gretnen ‘to become great, be pregnant’.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gretnen‘to become great, be pregnant’
- Englishearliest quotation 1685greaten
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gretnen‘to become great, be pregnant’
- Englishearliest quotation 1685greaten
Earliest quotation: 1685, Thomas Ken: “one studies how how to please his prince, the…”
Formed from great + -en
Proto-Indo-European *gʰrewd- ‘to rub’
Proto-Germanic *grautaz ‘coarse’
Proto-West Germanic *graut
Old English grēat ‘big’
Middle English greet ‘great’
English great
Every English word from Middle English gretnen
Today it means
verb To become great or large; increase; dilate.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English gretnen / greaten