Etymograph

English

shiply

Shiply comes from Old English sciplīċ ‘naval, relating to a fleet’, from sċip ‘ship’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *skey- ‘to cut’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*skey-1‘to cut’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*skēi-b-1uncertain
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skipą2‘ship’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skip3‘ship’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċip4‘ship’
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150sciplīċ5‘naval, relating to a fleet’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*schipli5reconstructed
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1942shiply5

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *skipą, which cites Kroonen
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *skip
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Old English scip
  4. 4 Wiktionary, Old English sciplic
  5. 5 Wiktionary, English shiply
  6. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1942, Harold S. Ingham: “But through its tiled passages there sails a shiply…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*skey-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *skipą, which cites Kroonen‘to cut’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*skēi-b-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *skipą, which cites Kroonenuncertain
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skipąWiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *skip‘ship’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skipWiktionary, Old English scip‘ship’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċipWiktionary, Old English sciplic‘ship’
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150sciplīċWiktionary, English shiply‘naval, relating to a fleet’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*schipliWiktionary, English shiplyreconstructed
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1942shiplyWiktionary, English shiply. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1942, Harold S. Ingham: “But through its tiled passages there sails a shiply…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *skey- ‘to cut’

nice, science, scientific, conscious, kyle, ski, shift, shed, skipper, squire, shin, sheath, skeet, scuttle, prescient, skein, chine, scullery, shud, 41 more

through Proto-Germanic *skipą ‘ship’

equipment, shipping, skiff, 4 more

through Old English sċip ‘ship’

skip, 3 more

Today it means

adj Of, resembling, or relating to a ship or ships; naval.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “shiply”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *skipą, Proto-West Germanic *skip, Old English scip, Old English sciplic. 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 *skey- / shiply

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