English
lightless
Lightless comes from Old English lēohtlēas ‘without light, lightless’, and goes back to Proto-West Germanic *leuhtalaus.
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*leuhtalausreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lēohtlēas‘without light, lightless’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lightles
- Englishearliest quotation 1594lightless
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*leuhtalausreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lēohtlēas‘without light, lightless’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lightles
- Englishearliest quotation 1594lightless
Earliest quotation: 1594, William Shakespeare, Lucrece (First Quarto): “From the besieged Ardea all in post, Borne by…”
Formed from light + -less ‘lacking, without’
Proto-Indo-European *lewk- ‘to shine’
…
Proto-Germanic *leuhtą
Proto-West Germanic *leuht ‘light’
Old English lēoht
Middle English light ‘light, illumination’
English light
Every English word from Proto-West Germanic *leuhtalaus
Today it means
adj Lacking light; unilluminated; dark.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-West Germanic *leuhtalaus / lightless