Etymograph

English

thig

Thig comes from Old English þiċġan ‘to take, receive, accept’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *tek-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tek-1‘to receive’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*þigjaną1‘to accept, receive, beg’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*þiggjan1‘to accept, receive’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150þiċġan1‘to take, receive, accept’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500thiggen1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1800thig1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English thig
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1800, Alexander Carmichael: “This is not second clothing. This cloth is not…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tek-Wiktionary, English thig‘to receive’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*þigjanąWiktionary, English thig‘to accept, receive, beg’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*þiggjanWiktionary, English thig‘to accept, receive’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150þiċġanWiktionary, English thig‘to take, receive, accept’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500thiggenWiktionary, English thig
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1800thigWiktionary, English thig. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1800, Alexander Carmichael: “This is not second clothing. This cloth is not…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *tek- ‘to receive’

check, toilet, chess, shah, 8 more

Today it means

verb To solicit or receive, usually by begging; ask as alms.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “thig”. 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 *tek- / thig

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