English
ladle
Ladle comes from Proto-Germanic *hlaþaną ‘to load’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂- ‘to put, lay out’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kleh₂-‘to put, lay out’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hlaþaną‘to load’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hlædel
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ladel
- Englishearliest quotation 1680ladle
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kleh₂-‘to put, lay out’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hlaþaną‘to load’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hlædel
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ladel
- Englishearliest quotation 1680ladle
Earliest quotation: 1680, Robert Boyle: “When the materials of glass have been kept long…”
Formed from lade + -le ‘agent suffix’
Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂- ‘to put, lay out’
Proto-Germanic *hlaþaną ‘to load’
Proto-West Germanic *hlaþan ‘to load’
Old English hladan ‘to load’
Middle English laden ‘to load’
English lade
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂- ‘to put, lay out’
last, clerk, loot, clergy, clerical, cleric, 6 more
through Proto-Germanic *hlaþaną ‘to load’
Today it means
noun A deep-bowled spoonlike utensil with a long, usually curved, handle.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂- / ladle