From leaf + meal, modelled after leafmould.
A compound of leaf + meal
Proto-Germanic *laubą
Proto-West Germanic *laub
Old English lēaf
Middle English lef ‘Foliage’
English leaf
Proto-Indo-European *meh₁- ‘to measure’
Proto-Germanic *mēlą ‘time’
Proto-West Germanic *māl ‘time’
Old English mǣl ‘measure’
Middle English mel ‘a time’
English meal
Today it means
noun A feed or meal, particularly for animals, consisting chiefly of decayed vegetable matter, especially leaves.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / leafmeal
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