Etymograph

English

stonefall

From stone + fall.

A compound of stone + fall

Proto-Indo-European *steyh₂- ‘to stiffen’

…

Proto-Germanic *stainaz

Proto-West Germanic *stain

Old English stān

Middle English ston ‘a stone’

English stone

Proto-Indo-European *h₃elh₁- ‘to collapse’

Proto-Germanic *fallaną ‘to fall’

Proto-West Germanic *fallan ‘to fall’

Old English feallan ‘to fall’

Middle English fallen ‘to fall’

English fall

Today it means

noun The fall of loose stones from a natural surface.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “stonefall”. 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 / stonefall