English
wash
Wash comes from Middle English wasshen ‘to wash’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *wed- ‘wet, water’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wed-‘wet’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*waskaną‘to wash’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*waskan‘to wash’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150wascan‘to wash’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500wasshen‘to wash’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1596wash
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wed-‘wet’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*waskaną‘to wash’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*waskan‘to wash’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150wascan‘to wash’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500wasshen‘to wash’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1596wash
Earliest quotation: c. 1596, William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Iohn: “These Lincoln washes have devoured them.”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *wed- ‘wet, water’
water, wet, und, abundance, vodka, surround, abundant, hydro, redundant, otter, hydrate, vitriol, dishwasher, hydride, vitreous, aldehyde, vedra, inundate, undine, unwashed, 42 more
through Proto-Germanic *waskaną ‘to wash, get wet’
Today it means
verb To clean with water.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wed- / wash