English
sight
Sight comes from Old English sihþ ‘something seen’, from Proto-West Germanic *sihti ‘seeing, sight’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to see, notice’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sehwaną‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sehwan‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*sihti‘seeing’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sihþ‘something seen’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sighte
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1588–1593sight
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sehwaną‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sehwan‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*sihti‘seeing’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sihþ‘something seen’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sighte
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1588–1593sight
Earliest quotation: c. 1588–1593, William Shakespeare, The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus: “Thy sight is young, / And thou shalt read…”
Formed from see + -t
Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to see’
Proto-Germanic *sehwaną ‘to see’
Proto-West Germanic *sehwan ‘to see’
Old English sēon ‘to see’
Middle English seen ‘to observe’
English see
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to see, notice’
say, second, social, saw, society, executive, suit, associate, subsequent, sequence, pursue, sue, consecutive, prosecution, sequel, execute, consequently, saga, persecution, sect, sequential, intrinsic, consequent, executor, sequestration, ensue, dissociation, persecute, segue, sequester, dissociate, extrinsic, seg, sequitur, 34 more
through Proto-West Germanic *sehwan ‘to see’
Today it means
noun The sense or faculty by which objects are perceived through the agency of light; the sense by which we see.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- / sight