Etymograph

English

luke

Luke (lukewarm) comes from Middle English leuȝke, probably from an unattested Old English *hlēoc.

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150*hlēoc1uncertain
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500leuȝke1
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1836luke1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English luke
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1836, Charles Dickens: “Let me have nine penn'orth o' brandy and water…”.

Lineage

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150*hlēocWiktionary, English lukeuncertain
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500leuȝkeWiktionary, English luke
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1836lukeWiktionary, English luke. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1836, Charles Dickens: “Let me have nine penn'orth o' brandy and water…”

The story

From Middle English leuȝke, leuk, leuke, lewk, lewke, louk, luk, luke, lheuc, probably from Old English *hlēoc beside hlēow- (whence lew); compare rēoc and rēow, slēac and unslēaw, etc.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

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Today it means

adj lukewarm

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “luke”. 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 / Old English *hlēoc / luke