English
lend
Lend comes from Old English lǣnan ‘to lend’, from Proto-Germanic *laihnijaną ‘to loan’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- ‘to leave, leave over’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leykʷ-‘to leave, leave over’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laihną‘loan’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laihnijaną‘to loan’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*laihnijan‘to loan, lend’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lǣnan‘to lend’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lenen
- Englishearliest quotation 1712lend
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leykʷ-‘to leave, leave over’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laihną‘loan’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laihnijaną‘to loan’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*laihnijan‘to loan, lend’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lǣnan‘to lend’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lenen
- Englishearliest quotation 1712lend
Earliest quotation: 1712, Joseph Addison, Cato: “[…] Cato, lend me for a vvhile thy Patience,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- ‘to leave, leave over’
relic, elliptical, relinquish, delinquent, elliptic, delinquency, ellipse, ecliptic, ellipsis, 12 more
through Proto-Germanic *laihną ‘loan’
through Middle English lenen
Another origin of lend
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lendʰ-‘loin, kidney’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*landį̄‘loin’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*landīreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lenden‘loin’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150lendenu‘loins’plural of lenden
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lende‘The (human) loins or their muscles’
- Englishtodaylend
Today it means
verb To allow to be used by someone temporarily, on condition that it or its equivalent will be returned.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- / lend