Etymograph

English

hungry

Hungry comes from Old English hungriġ, from Proto-Germanic *hungrugaz, from *hungruz ‘hunger’, from Proto-Indo-European *kenk- ‘to feel hunger’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kenk-1‘to feel hunger’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hungruz2‘hunger’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hungrugaz1‘hungry’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hungrug1‘hungry’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150hungriġ1‘hungry’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hungry1‘hungry’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1599hungry1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English hungry
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *hungrugaz
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1599, The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar: “Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look;”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kenk-Wiktionary, English hungry‘to feel hunger’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hungruzWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *hungrugaz‘hunger’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hungrugazWiktionary, English hungry‘hungry’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hungrugWiktionary, English hungry‘hungry’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150hungriġWiktionary, English hungry‘hungry’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hungryWiktionary, English hungry‘hungry’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1599hungryWiktionary, English hungry. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1599, The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar: “Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look;”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kenk- ‘to feel hunger’

heel, hough, hock

through Proto-Germanic *hungruz ‘hunger’

hunger

Today it means

adj Affected by hunger; having the physical need for food.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “hungry”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Proto-Germanic *hungrugaz. 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 *kenk- / hungry

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