English
grime
Grime comes from Middle English grim ‘dirt or soot covering the face’, from Old English grīma ‘mask’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰer- ‘to rub, stroke’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰer-‘to rub, stroke’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrēy-‘to paint, streak, smear’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grīmô‘mask’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*grīmō‘mask’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150grīma‘mask’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500grim‘dirt or soot covering the face’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1594grime
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰer-‘to rub, stroke’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrēy-‘to paint, streak, smear’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grīmô‘mask’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*grīmō‘mask’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150grīma‘mask’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500grim‘dirt or soot covering the face’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1594grime
Earliest quotation: c. 1594, William Shakespeare, The Comedie of Errors: “[…] ſhe ſweats a man may go ouer ſhoes…”
The story
Likely influenced by dialectal Dutch grijmsel (‘grit, grime’), Dutch grijm (‘soot, grime’), Middle Dutch gryme (‘mask’), Middle Low German greme (‘dirt’), compare Danish grime (‘a halter’), Danish grimet (‘soiled, stripy’), Norwegian Bokmål grimete (‘soiled, stripy’), Norwegian Nynorsk grimete (‘soiled, stripy’).
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʰer- ‘to rub, stroke’
grand, greedy, charismatic, grill, yearn, chromatic, growl, yar, grit, ochre, grout, exhort, grisly, grist, 17 more
through Proto-Germanic *grīmô ‘mask’
Today it means
noun Dirt, grease, soot, etc. that is ingrained and difficult to remove.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʰer- / grime