English
hole
Hole comes from Old English hol ‘hollow place, cavity’, from Proto-Germanic *hulą ‘hollow space’, from *hulaz ‘hollow’, of uncertain origin.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hulaz‘hollow’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hulą‘hollow space’reconstructednoun derivative of *hulaz
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hol‘hollow space, cavity’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hol‘hole, hollow place’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hole
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1606–1607hole
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hulaz‘hollow’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hulą‘hollow space’reconstructednoun derivative of *hulaz
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hol‘hollow space, cavity’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hol‘hole, hollow place’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hole
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1606–1607hole
Earliest quotation: c. 1606–1607, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra: “To be called into a huge sphere, and not…”
The story
Inherited from Middle English hole, hol, from Old English hol (‘orifice, hollow place, cavity’), from Proto-West Germanic *hol (‘hole’), from Proto-Germanic *hulą (‘hollow space, cavity’), noun derivative of Proto-Germanic *hulaz (‘hollow’), which is of uncertain ultimate origin.uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱel- ‘to cover’
hell, cell, hall, color, ceiling, hull, helmet, halt, helm, holder, conceal, clandestine, sari, holden, uphold, sala, cilia, recline, declination, haugh, declension, tricolour, seel, occultation, halberd, 36 more
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱéleti ‘to be covering, hiding’
through Proto-Germanic *helaną ‘to hide, conceal’
through Proto-Germanic *hulaz ‘hollow’
through Middle English hole
Today it means
noun A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit; a dent; a depression; a fissure.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *hulaz / hole