English
string
String comes from Middle English string, from Old English strenġ, from Proto-Germanic *strangiz, from PIE *strengʰ- ‘rope, cord’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*strengʰ-‘rope’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*strangizreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*strangireconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150strenġ
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500string
- Englishearliest quotation 1611same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*strengʰ-‘rope’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*strangizreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*strangireconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150strenġ
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500string
- Englishearliest quotation 1611same form
Earliest quotation: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “The string of his tongue was loosed.”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *strengʰ- ‘rope, cord, strand’
strong, district, stress, strength, prestige, strict, strain, strait, 47 more
Another origin of string
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500stryngen
- Englishtodaystring
Today it means
noun A long, thin and flexible structure made from threads twisted together.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *strengʰ- / string