English
handtame
Handtame comes from Old English handtam ‘tame enough to be handled’, and goes back to Proto-West Germanic *handutam.
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*handutamreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150handtam‘tame enough to be handled’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500handtame
- Englishearliest quotation 1964same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*handutamreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150handtam‘tame enough to be handled’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500handtame
- Englishearliest quotation 1964same form
Earliest quotation: 1964, Senior Citizen: “Even children can handtame wild birds, if they follow…”
Every English word from Proto-West Germanic *handutam
Today it means
adj Tame and accustomed to being held in the hand; (by extension) mild; meek; humble; docile
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-West Germanic *handutam / handtame