Etymograph

English

brew

Brew comes from Middle English brewen ‘to brew’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰrewh₁-1‘to brew’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*brewwaną1‘to brew’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*breuwan1‘to brew’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150brēowan1‘to brew’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500brewen1‘to brew’
  6. Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1598brew1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English brew
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice: “There is some ill a-brewing towards my rest,”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰrewh₁-Wiktionary, English brew‘to brew’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*brewwanąWiktionary, English brew‘to brew’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*breuwanWiktionary, English brew‘to brew’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150brēowanWiktionary, English brew‘to brew’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500brewenWiktionary, English brew‘to brew’
  6. Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1598brewWiktionary, English brew. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice: “There is some ill a-brewing towards my rest,”

The story

It may be related to English barley.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- ‘to brew’

burn, brand, purple, bread, bourbon, bourne, fervor, broth, fervent, ferment, brunt, brim, effervescent, porphyry, purpura, broil, briny, bren, 40 more

Another origin of brew

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃bʰrúHs‘brow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*brūwō‘eyebrow’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150bru‘eyebrow’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500brewe‘eyebrow’
  5. Englishtodaybrew

Today it means

verb To make tea or coffee by mixing tea leaves or coffee beans with hot water.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “brew”. 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 *bʰrewh₁- / brew

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