Etymograph

English

edged

Edged comes from Middle English egged ‘having an edge of a certain type’, from Old English eċġan ‘to sharpen’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱ-1‘sharp’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éḱ-ih₂ ~ h₂ḱ-yéh₂-s1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*agjō2‘edge, corner’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aggju3‘edge, corner’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150eċġ4‘edge’
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150eċġan5as ecged‘to sharpen’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500egged5‘having an edge of a certain type’
  8. Englishtodayedged5

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *agjō
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *aggju
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Old English ecg
  4. 4 Wiktionary, Old English ecgan
  5. 5 Wiktionary, English edged

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱ-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *agjō‘sharp’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éḱ-ih₂ ~ h₂ḱ-yéh₂-sWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *agjōreconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*agjōWiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *aggju‘edge, corner’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aggjuWiktionary, Old English ecg‘edge, corner’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150eċġWiktionary, Old English ecgan‘edge’
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150eċġanWiktionary, English edgedas ecged‘to sharpen’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500eggedWiktionary, English edged‘having an edge of a certain type’
  8. EnglishtodayedgedWiktionary, English edged

Formed from edge + -ed

Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- ‘sharp’

Proto-Germanic *agjō ‘edge’

Proto-West Germanic *aggju ‘edge’

Old English eċġ

Middle English egge ‘an edge of a blade or instrument’

English edge

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- ‘sharp’

hear, acid, ear, hammer, acute, axe, eager, acne, oxide, vinegar, mediocre, acetate, paragon, acupuncture, acacia, exacerbate, mediocrity, acumen, acme, acuity, hark, acyl, acrid, rosacea, acrimony, acerbic, exacerbation, roselle, 72 more

through Proto-Germanic *agjō ‘edge, corner’

egg, 1 more

Today it means

verb That has a sharp planar surface.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “edged”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *agjō, Proto-West Germanic *aggju, Old English ecg, Old English ecgan. 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 *h₂eḱ- / edged

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