Etymograph

English

whilom

Whilom comes from Middle English whilom ‘(adverb) at one time, formerly, once’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kʷyeh₁- ‘to rest’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷyeh₁-1‘to rest’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hwīlō1‘period of time, time, while’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwīlu1‘period of time, time, while’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwīlum1reconstructeddative plural of *hwīlu
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150hwīlum1‘at one time, once’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500whilom1‘(adverb) at one time, formerly, once’
  7. Englishearliest quotation a. 1394whilom1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: a. 1394, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Knight's Tale: “Whilom, as olde stories tellen us [...]”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷyeh₁-Wiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED‘to rest’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hwīlōWiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED‘period of time, time, while’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwīluWiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED‘period of time, time, while’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwīlumWiktionary, English whilom, which cites OEDreconstructeddative plural of *hwīlu
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150hwīlumWiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED‘at one time, once’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500whilomWiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED‘(adverb) at one time, formerly, once’
  7. Englishearliest quotation a. 1394whilomWiktionary, English whilom, which cites OED. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: a. 1394, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Knight's Tale: “Whilom, as olde stories tellen us [...]”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kʷyeh₁- ‘to rest’

quite, quiet, quit, whilst, coy, requiem, tranquil, quiescent, 17 more

through Proto-West Germanic *hwīlu ‘period of time, time, while’

while, 1 more

Today it means

adv At some time in the past; formerly, once upon a time.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “whilom”. 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 *kʷyeh₁- / whilom

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