English
loathe
Loathe comes from Proto-West Germanic *laiþēn ‘to loathe, detest, revile’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂leytos.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂leytos‘abhorrence, loath’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laiþaz‘loathsome’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laiþāną‘to loathe, to detest, to revile’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*laiþēn‘to loathe, detest, revile’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lāþian
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lothe
- Englishearliest quotation 1576loathe
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂leytos‘abhorrence, loath’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laiþaz‘loathsome’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*laiþāną‘to loathe, to detest, to revile’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*laiþēn‘to loathe, detest, revile’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lāþian
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lothe
- Englishearliest quotation 1576loathe
Earliest quotation: 1576, George Whetstone, The Castle of Delight: […]: “To Scriptures read they muſt their leaſure frame, /…”
Linked words
through Old English lāþian
Today it means
verb To detest, hate, or revile (someone or something).
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂leytos / loathe