English
tither
Tither comes from Middle English tithe ‘tenth’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *déḱm̥ ‘ten’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*déḱm̥1‘ten’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deḱm̥tós1reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*tehundô2‘tenth’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*tehundō2‘tenth’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150tēoþa2‘tenth’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tithe3‘tenth’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tithere4as tither
- Englishtodaytither4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *tehundô
- 2 Wiktionary, Middle English tithe
- 3 Wiktionary, Middle English tithere
- 4 Wiktionary, English tither
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*déḱm̥Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *tehundô‘ten’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deḱm̥tósWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *tehundôreconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*tehundôWiktionary, Middle English tithe‘tenth’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*tehundōWiktionary, Middle English tithe‘tenth’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150tēoþaWiktionary, Middle English tithe‘tenth’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500titheWiktionary, Middle English tithere‘tenth’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tithereWiktionary, English titheras tither
- EnglishtodaytitherWiktionary, English tither
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *déḱm̥ ‘ten’
ten, century, cent, hundred, dick, decade, dean, dozen, den, sen, decimal, diner, hectare, tenfold, deca, denier, dwt, doyen, deni, 49 more
Today it means
noun One who collects tithes.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “tither”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *tehundô, Middle English tithe, Middle English tithere. 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 *déḱm̥ / tither