Etymograph

English

stepwell

From step + well.

A compound of step + well

Proto-Indo-European *stebʰ- ‘to support’

Proto-Germanic *stapjaną ‘to step’

Proto-West Germanic *stappjan ‘to step’

Old English steppan ‘to step’

Middle English steppen ‘to step’

English step

Proto-Germanic *wela

Old English wel ‘well’

Middle English wel ‘well’

English well

Today it means

noun A well in which the water can be reached by descending a set of steps.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “stepwell”. 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 / stepwell

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