English
grunting
Grunting comes from Middle English grunten ‘to grunt or groan as or like an animal’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem- ‘to thunder’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrem-‘to thunder’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grunnōnąreconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grunnatjaną‘to grunt’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*grunnattjan‘to grunt’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150grunnettan‘to grunt’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500grunten‘to grunt or groan as or like an animal’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500gruntynge
- Englishearliest quotation 1886grunting
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrem-‘to thunder’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grunnōnąreconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grunnatjaną‘to grunt’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*grunnattjan‘to grunt’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150grunnettan‘to grunt’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500grunten‘to grunt or groan as or like an animal’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500gruntynge
- Englishearliest quotation 1886grunting
Earliest quotation: 1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, Folk and Fairy Tales: “Tired with the heat and my walk, I threw…”
Formed from grunt + -ing
Proto-Indo-European *gʰrun- ‘to shout’
…
Proto-Germanic *grunnatjaną ‘to grunt’
Proto-West Germanic *grunnattjan ‘to grunt’
Old English grunnettan ‘to grunt’
Middle English grunten ‘to grunt or groan as or like an animal’
English grunt
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem- ‘to thunder’
through Proto-Germanic *grunnōną
Today it means
verb A sound of grunts.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem- / grunting