English
russet
Russet comes from Anglo-Norman russet, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ- ‘red’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁rewdʰ-‘red’root as named · steps between not traced
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600rous
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400russet
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1597same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁rewdʰ-‘red’root as named · steps between not traced
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600rous
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400russet
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1597same form
Earliest quotation: c. 1590–1597, William Shakespeare, A Midsommer Nights Dreame: “[W]hen they him ſpie, / As Wilde-geeſe, that the…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ- ‘red’
red, ruby, reddish, rowan, rust, roux, corroborate, ruddy, redness, roan, rouse, rubric, rubella, erythema, robusta, rufous, ruddock, rud, 35 more
Today it means
noun A reddish-brown color.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ- / russet