English
stall
Stall comes from Old English steall ‘standing place, position’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *stel-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stel-‘to place, put, post, stand’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*stallaz‘standing, position, stall, stable’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150steall‘standing place, position’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500stall
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1593same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stel-‘to place, put, post, stand’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*stallaz‘standing, position, stall, stable’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150steall‘standing place, position’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500stall
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1593same form
Earliest quotation: c. 1593, William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]: “Deck'd in thy rights , as thou art stall'd…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *stel- ‘to place, put, post, stand’
local, location, allow, locate, stole, lieu, apostle, stool, loco, locus, locator, epistle, stalk, locative, stele, apostolate, stela, stolid, stell, 32 more
through Proto-Germanic *stallaz ‘standing, position, stall, stable’
Another origin of stall
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400estaler
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500stallen‘to abide, dwell, place in a location, stop, come to a standstill’
- Englishtodaystall
Today it means
noun A compartment for a single animal in a stable or cattle shed.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *stel- / stall