Etymograph

English

strong

Strong comes from Middle English strong, from Old English strang, from Proto-Germanic *strangaz ‘tight’, from PIE *strengʰ- ‘taut’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*strengʰ-1‘taut’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*strangaz1‘tight’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*strang1‘severe’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150strang1
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500strong1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1558strong1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English strong
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1558, John Knox: “[…] but grounding him ſelfe vpon ſtrong reaſons, to…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*strengʰ-Wiktionary, English strong‘taut’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*strangazWiktionary, English strong‘tight’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*strangWiktionary, English strong‘severe’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150strangWiktionary, English strong
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500strongWiktionary, English strong
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1558strongWiktionary, English strong. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1558, John Knox: “[…] but grounding him ſelfe vpon ſtrong reaſons, to…”

Word family

English words that share an ancestor with strong, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.

through Proto-Indo-European *strengʰ- ‘taut, stiff, tight’

  • district ← districtus ← distringere ← stringo ← *strengō
  • stress ← destresse ← destrecier ← distringō ← stringō
  • strict ← strictus ← stringō ← *strengō ← *stréngʰeti
  • string ← strenġ ← *strangi ← *strangiz
  • strain ← straynen ← estreindre ← stringō ← *strengō
  • prestige ← praestīgium ← praestringō ← stringō ← *strengō
  • strait ← streit ← estreit ← strictus ← stringō

through Proto-Germanic *strangaz ‘tight, strict, straight, strong’

  • strengthen ← strengthenen ← strengthe ← strengþu ← *strangiþu

through Proto-West Germanic *strang ‘severe, strict, rigorous, strong’

  • strength ← strengthe ← strengþu ← *strangiþu

53 more relatives in the full family tree

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Today it means

adj Capable of producing great physical force.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “strong”. 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 *strengʰ- / strong