English
thrill
Thrill comes from Old English þȳrlian ‘to pierce’, from þȳrel ‘hole’, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *þurhilą.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*þurhiląreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*þurhil‘perforation’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150þȳrel‘hole’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150þȳrlian‘to pierce’
- Englishearliest quotation 1590thrill
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*þurhiląreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*þurhil‘perforation’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150þȳrel‘hole’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150þȳrlian‘to pierce’
- Englishearliest quotation 1590thrill
Earliest quotation: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book I, Canto VI: “The cruel word her tender heart so thrilled, That…”
Linked words
pairs
- thrill and nostril both from Old English þȳrel ‘hole’
through Proto-Indo-European *ter- ‘through, over’
term, tram, intrigue, treachery, thro, inextricable, 35 more
Today it means
verb To suddenly excite someone, or to give someone great pleasure; to (figuratively) electrify; to experience such a sensation.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *þurhilą / thrill