From hay + lift, influenced by airlift.
A compound of hay + lift
Proto-Indo-European *kewh₂- ‘to beat, hew, forge’
…
Proto-Germanic *hawją
Proto-West Germanic *hawi
Old English hīeġ
Middle English hey
English hay
Proto-Germanic *luftuz ‘roof, sky, air’
Proto-Germanic *luftijaną ‘to raise in the air’
Old Norse lypta ‘to lift’
Middle English liften
English lift
The story
From hay + lift, influenced by airlift.
Today it means
noun An airlift in which hay is dropped for stranded cattle.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / haylift
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