Etymograph

English

toe

Toe comes from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- ‘to show’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deyḱ-1‘to show’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*taihwǭ1reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*taihā1reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150tā1
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500to1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1927toe1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English toe
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1927, Nordahl Grieg, The Ship Sails On: “"Here's ten shillings for you, but I'm going to…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deyḱ-Wiktionary, English toe‘to show’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*taihwǭWiktionary, English toereconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*taihāWiktionary, English toereconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150tāWiktionary, English toe
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500toWiktionary, English toe
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1927toeWiktionary, English toe. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1927, Nordahl Grieg, The Ship Sails On: “"Here's ten shillings for you, but I'm going to…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- ‘to show’

teach, index, indicate, predict, indication, dictionary, digit, addict, indicator, dictate, indicative, syndicate, contradiction, token, dictator, contradict, ditto, predicate, diction, ditty, dictum, interdict, syndicalism, dict, tache, indicia, 34 more

through Middle English to

to, too

Today it means

noun Each of the five digits on the end of the human foot.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “toe”. 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 *deyḱ- / toe

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