Etymograph

English

beclipping

Beclipping comes from Old English beclypping ‘embrace’, from clyppan ‘to clasp’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gel- ‘to roll up together, into a ball’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gel-1‘to roll up together, into a ball’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*b(ʰ)1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gelb(ʰ)-1reconstructed
  4. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*klupjaną1reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150clyppan2‘to clasp’
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150beclyppan3‘to clasp, embrace’
  7. Old Englishc. 450–1150beclypping4‘embrace’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*beclipping4reconstructed
  9. Englishtodaybeclipping4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old English clyppan
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old English beclyppan
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Old English beclypping
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English beclipping

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gel-Wiktionary, Old English clyppan‘to roll up together, into a ball’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*b(ʰ)Wiktionary, Old English clyppanreconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gelb(ʰ)-Wiktionary, Old English clyppanreconstructed
  4. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*klupjanąWiktionary, Old English clyppanreconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150clyppanWiktionary, Old English beclyppan‘to clasp’
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150beclyppanWiktionary, Old English beclypping‘to clasp, embrace’
  7. Old Englishc. 450–1150beclyppingWiktionary, English beclipping‘embrace’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*beclippingWiktionary, English beclippingreconstructed
  9. EnglishtodaybeclippingWiktionary, English beclipping

Formed from beclip + -ing

Proto-Indo-European *glemb-

Proto-Germanic *bi- ‘be-’

Old English beclyppan ‘to clip, clasp, embrace, enfold’

Middle English beclippen

English beclip

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *gel- ‘to roll up together, into a ball’

children, child, cold, clean, cloud, chill, globe, gel, cluster, jelly, colt, clout, clot, gelatin, gelato, clough, glebe, ganglion, globus, klutz, clod, globulin, 47 more

through Old English clyppan ‘to clasp’

clip

Today it means

noun An embrace.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “beclipping”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Old English clyppan, Old English beclyppan, Old English beclypping. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gel- / beclipping

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