Etymograph

English

wind

Wind comes from Old English wind, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂wéh₁n̥ts ‘that which blows’, and ultimately from *h₂weh₁- ‘to blow’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂weh₁-1‘to blow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂wḗh₁ti1‘to blow’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂wéh₁n̥ts1‘blowing; the wind’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂wéh₁n̥tos1‘wind’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*windaz1‘wind’reconstructed
  6. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*wind1‘wind’reconstructed
  7. Old Englishc. 450–1150wind1‘wind’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500wynd1
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1611wind1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English wind
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂weh₁-Wiktionary, English wind‘to blow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂wḗh₁tiWiktionary, English wind‘to blow’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂wéh₁n̥tsWiktionary, English wind‘blowing; the wind’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂wéh₁n̥tosWiktionary, English wind‘wind’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*windazWiktionary, English wind‘wind’reconstructed
  6. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*windWiktionary, English wind‘wind’reconstructed
  7. Old Englishc. 450–1150windWiktionary, English wind‘wind’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500wyndWiktionary, English wind
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1611windWiktionary, English wind. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂weh₁- ‘to blow’

weather, van, athletic, athlete, velocity, wing, ventilation, ventilate, 8 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂wéh₁n̥ts

event, 4 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂wéh₁n̥tos

winter, 1 more

Another origin of wind

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wendʰ-‘to wind, to turn’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*windaną‘to wind, to wrap’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150windan‘to twist, wind, circle, curl, spiral, eddy’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500wynden‘to twist, wind, or coil’
  5. Englishtodaywind

Today it means

noun Real or perceived movement of atmospheric air usually caused by convection or differences in air pressure.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “wind”. 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 *h₂weh₁- / wind

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