Etymograph

English

dike

Dike comes from Old Norse díki ‘ditch’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *dʰeygʷ- ‘to dig’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeygʷ-1‘to dig’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
  2. Old Norsec. 800–1350díki1‘ditch’
  3. Northern Middle Englishmoderndik1
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1994dike1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English dike
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1994, John H. Makin, Norman J. Ornstein: “In 1574, the duke of Alva laid siege to…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeygʷ-Wiktionary, English dike‘to dig’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
  2. Old Norsec. 800–1350díkiWiktionary, English dike‘ditch’
  3. Northern Middle EnglishmoderndikWiktionary, English dike
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1994dikeWiktionary, English dike. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1994, John H. Makin, Norman J. Ornstein: “In 1574, the duke of Alva laid siege to…”

The story

Influenced by Middle Dutch dijc (‘ditch; dam’) and Middle Low German dīk (‘dam’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *dʰeygʷ- ‘to dig’

final, fine, finish, fix, definition, infinite, infinity, finite, dig, fin, ditch, financier, crucify, infinitive, fino, finis, finial, 23 more

through Northern Middle English dik

dyke

Today it means

noun —

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “dike”. 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 *dʰeygʷ- / dike

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