Etymograph

English

glede

Glede comes from Middle English glede ‘kite’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰleydʰ- ‘to glide’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰleydʰ-1‘to glide’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*glidǭ2‘kite’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*glidā2‘kite (bird)’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150glida2‘kite (bird)’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500glede2‘kite’
  6. Englishtodayglede2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *glidǭ
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English glede

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰleydʰ-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *glidǭ‘to glide’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*glidǭWiktionary, English glede‘kite’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*glidāWiktionary, English glede‘kite (bird)’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150glidaWiktionary, English glede‘kite (bird)’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gledeWiktionary, English glede‘kite’
  6. EnglishtodaygledeWiktionary, English glede

Every English word from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰleydʰ-

Another origin of glede

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰelh₃-‘to shine’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*glōdiz‘incandescence, glowing ember, burning ash’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*glōdi‘glow’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150glēd‘glowing coal, ember, fire, flame, instrument of torture’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gleede
  6. Englishtodayglede

Today it means

noun Any of several birds of prey, especially a kite, Milvus milvus.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “glede”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Proto-Germanic *glidǭ. 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 *ǵʰleydʰ- / glede

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