English
blossom
Blossom comes from Old English blostm ‘blossom, bloom’, from Proto-Germanic *blōstmô ‘flower’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₃- ‘to bloom, to thrive’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰleh₃-1‘to bloom, to thrive’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰleh₃-s-1‘bloom, flower’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*blōstmô1‘flower’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150blostm1‘blossom, bloom’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500blosme1
- Englishearliest quotation 1530blossom1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English blossom
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1530, W[illiam] T[yndale]: “And on the moꝛowe / Moſes went in to…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰleh₃-Wiktionary, English blossom‘to bloom, to thrive’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰleh₃-s-Wiktionary, English blossom‘bloom, flower’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*blōstmôWiktionary, English blossom‘flower’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150blostmWiktionary, English blossom‘blossom, bloom’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500blosmeWiktionary, English blossom
- Englishearliest quotation 1530blossomWiktionary, English blossom. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1530, W[illiam] T[yndale]: “And on the moꝛowe / Moſes went in to…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₃- ‘to bloom, to thrive’
full, blood, fool, flower, blow, blade, foil, bless, floral, bleed, flora, flourish, folly, bloom, 63 more
Today it means
noun A flower, especially one indicating that a fruit tree is fruiting; (collectively) a mass of such flowers.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “blossom”. 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 *bʰleh₃- / blossom