Etymograph

English

sitzkrieg

Sitzkrieg comes from German Sitzkrieg ‘sitting war’, from sitzen ‘to sit’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sed-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-1‘to sit’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sédyeti1‘to be sitting’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sitjaną2‘to sit’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sittjan3‘to sit’reconstructed
  5. Old High Germanc. 750–1050sizzen3
  6. Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350sitzen3‘to sit’
  7. Germanc. 1650–presentsitzen4‘to sit’
  8. Germanc. 1650–presentSitzkrieg4‘sitting war’
  9. Englishtodaysitzkrieg4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *sitjaną
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *sittjan
  3. 3 Wiktionary, German sitzen
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English sitzkrieg

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *sitjaną‘to sit’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sédyetiWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *sitjaną‘to be sitting’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sitjanąWiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *sittjan‘to sit’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sittjanWiktionary, German sitzen‘to sit’reconstructed
  5. Old High Germanc. 750–1050sizzenWiktionary, German sitzen
  6. Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350sitzenWiktionary, German sitzen‘to sit’
  7. Germanc. 1650–presentsitzenWiktionary, English sitzkrieg‘to sit’
  8. Germanc. 1650–presentSitzkriegWiktionary, English sitzkrieg‘sitting war’
  9. EnglishtodaysitzkriegWiktionary, English sitzkrieg

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sed- ‘to sit’

set, president, sell, size, seat, method, chair, session, settle, resident, assess, nest, possess, niche, saddle, exodus, sedan, reside, sediment, subsidy, residual, residue, siege, nye, sedentary, insidious, beset, prasad, cathode, soot, sedative, setter, dissident, obsess, anode, sedate, chaise, presidio, seance, salo, 92 more

through Proto-Germanic *sitjaną ‘to sit’

sitting, 4 more

through Proto-West Germanic *sittjan ‘to sit’

sit, sate, 3 more

Today it means

noun Warfare without any military operations or campaigns; a stalemate.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “sitzkrieg”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *sitjaną, Proto-West Germanic *sittjan, German sitzen. 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 *sed- / sitzkrieg

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