Etymograph

English

how

How comes from Old English hū ‘how’, from Proto-Germanic *hwō ‘through what, how’, and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European interrogative root *kʷ-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷ-1‘interrogative root’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷís1‘who, what’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hwō1‘through what, how’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwō1reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150hū1‘how’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500how1
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1599how1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English how
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1596–1599, William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]. Epilogue.: “Shal. How a score of ewes now? Sil. Thereafter…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷ-Wiktionary, English how‘interrogative root’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷísWiktionary, English how‘who, what’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hwōWiktionary, English how‘through what, how’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwōWiktionary, English howreconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150hūWiktionary, English how‘how’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500howWiktionary, English how
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1599howWiktionary, English how. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1596–1599, William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]. Epilogue.: “Shal. How a score of ewes now? Sil. Thereafter…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kʷ- ‘the primary interrogative root’

which, who, whether, whose, whom, neutral, quantity, ubiquitous, 17 more

through Proto-Indo-European *kʷís ‘who, what’

what, when, where, why, ut, quid, 6 more

through Old English hū ‘to what degree’

hoo

Another origin of how

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150hōh‘promontory’
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500howe
  3. Englishtodayhow

Today it means

adv To what degree or extent.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “how”. 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 *kʷ- / how

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