Indo-European Lexicon
PIE Etymon and IE Reflexes
Below we display: a Proto-Indo-European (PIE) etymon adapted from Pokorny, with our own English gloss; our Semantic Field assignment(s) for the etymon, linked to information about the field(s); an optional Comment; and Reflexes (derived words) in various Indo-European languages, organized by family/group in west-to-east order where Germanic is split into West/North/East families and English, our language of primary emphasis, is artificially separated from West Germanic. IE Reflexes appear most often as single words with any optional letter(s) enclosed in parentheses; but alternative full spellings are separated by '/' and "principal parts" appear in a standard order (e.g. masculine, feminine, and neuter forms) separated by commas.
Reflexes are annotated with: Part-of-Speech and/or other Grammatical feature(s); a short Gloss which, especially for modern English reflexes, may be confined to the oldest sense; and some Source citation(s) with 'LRC' always understood as editor. Keys to PoS/Gram feature abbreviations and Source codes appear below the reflexes; at the end are links to the previous/next etyma [in Pokorny's alphabetic order] that have reflexes.
All reflex pages are currently under active construction; as time goes on, corrections may be made and/or more etyma & reflexes may be added.
Pokorny Etymon: 1. mel-, also smel-, melə- : mlē-, mel-d- : ml-ed-, mel-dh-, ml-ēi- : mlī̆-, melə-k- : mlā-k-, mlēu- : mlū̆- 'to mill, grind; fine, ground'
Semantic Field(s): to Grind
Indo-European Reflexes:
| Family/Language | Reflex(es) | PoS/Gram. | Gloss | Source(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Celtic | ||||
| Old Irish: | melim | vb | to mill, grind | LRC |
| Middle Breton: | mout | n.masc | wether | W7 |
| English | ||||
| Old English: | mealmiht | adj | sandy | GED |
| mealmstān | n.masc | malmstone | ASD/GED | |
| m(e)alt | n.neut | malt | ASD/W7 | |
| meltan | vb | to melt | W7 | |
| me(o)lu, melo, mela, mealu | n.neut | meal | ASD/W7 | |
| milde | adj | mild, gentle | LRC | |
| milte | n.masc/fem | melt (spleen) | ASD/W7 | |
| molde | n.fem | mold | ASD/W7 | |
| mylen | n.masc | mill | ASD/W7 | |
| Middle English: | aumal | n | enamel | MEV |
| blandishen | vb | to blandish | W7 | |
| emolument | n | emolument | W7 | |
| enamelen | vb | to enamel | W7 | |
| gromil | n | gromwell | W7 | |
| maillet | n | mallet | W7 | |
| malle | n | maul | W7 | |
| malliable | adj | malleable | W7 | |
| malt | n | malt | W7 | |
| mele | n | meal | W7 | |
| melten | vb | to melt | W7 | |
| mild | adj | mild | W7 | |
| milet | n | millet | W7 | |
| mille | n | mill | W7 | |
| milte | n | melt (spleen) | W7 | |
| moillen | vb | to moil | W7 | |
| mold | n | mold | W7 | |
| motoun | n | mutton | W7 | |
| smelt | n | smelt (fish) | W7 | |
| English: | amblygonite | n | basic lithium aluminum phosphate | AHD/W7 |
| amblyopia | n | poor vision without change in eye structure | AHD/W7 | |
| amylum | n | starch | AHD | |
| bland | adj | unperturbed, characterized by smoothness/tranquility | AHD/W7 | |
| blandish | vb | to cajole, coax with flattery | AHD/W7 | |
| blenny | n | small elongated scaleless fish | AHD/W7 | |
| blin, blini | n | small thick pancake | AHD/W7 | |
| blintz(e) | n | thin rolled pancake with filling | AHD/W7 | |
| chondromalacia | n | abnormal softening/degeneration of joint cartilage | AHD | |
| emollient | adj | making soft/supple | AHD/W7 | |
| emolument | n | income in form of compensation/perquisites | AHD/W7 | |
| enamel | n | opaque vitreous material fused to metal/ceramic surface | W7 | |
| enamel | vb.trans | to cover/inlay with enamel | AHD/W7 | |
| gromwell | n | plant with polished white stony nutlets | AHD/W7 | |
| immolate | vb.trans | to offer in sacrifice | AHD/W7 | |
| malleable | adj | subject to shaping by beating/pressure | AHD/W7 | |
| malleolus | n | bony rounded protuberance on ankle | AHD | |
| mallet | n | light hammer with large barrel-shaped head | AHD/W7 | |
| malleus | n | small bone in mammalian ear | AHD/W7 | |
| malm | n | light loamy soil | GED | |
| malt | n | grain, softened in water, used in brewing/distilling | AHD/W7 | |
| maltha | n | sticky black viscous bitumen | AHD/W7 | |
| maul | n | large heavy hammer used to drive piles/wedges | AHD/W7 | |
| meal | n | coarse-ground unbolted seeds of pulse/cereal grass | AHD/W7 | |
| mealie | n | ear of corn/grain | AHD | |
| melch | adj | soft, mild | AHD/W7 | |
| melt | n | spleen | AHD/W7 | |
| melt | vb | to pass from solid to liquid state | AHD/W7 | |
| meuniere | adj | rolled in flour then fried in butter | AHD | |
| mild | adj | gentle in behavior | AHD/W7 | |
| miliary | adj | having/composed of many small lesions/projections | AHD/W7 | |
| milium | n | small whitish lump in skin retaining oil gland secretions | AHD/W7 | |
| mill | n | building with machinery to mill grain | AHD/W7 | |
| mill | vb | to grind (grain into flour) | LRC | |
| millet | n | small-seeded annual cereal/forage grasses | AHD/W7 | |
| milt | n | male fish reproductive glands filled with secretion | AHD/W7 | |
| moil | vb | to make wet/dirty | AHD/W7 | |
| mola | n | ocean sunfish | AHD/W7 | |
| molar | n | tooth with rounded/flattened surface for grinding | AHD/W7 | |
| mold | n | soil, soft crumbling friable earth | AHD/W7 | |
| molder | vb | to decay, disintegrate, crumble to dust | AHD | |
| mole | n | work (of masonry/large stones/earth) set in sea as pier/breakwater | AHD/W7 | |
| mollusk | n | invertebrate animal (e.g. snail/clam) with soft body enclosed in hard shell | AHD/W7 | |
| mouille | adj | made liquid (as consonant sound) | AHD/CDC | |
| moulin | n | round vertical shaft in glacier cleared out by water/rock debris | AHD/W7 | |
| mulch | n | protective covering (e.g. sawdust/compost/paper) used on lawn/ground | AHD/W7 | |
| mutton | n | flesh of mature sheep | AHD/W7 | |
| mylonite | n | fine-grained laminated rock | AHD | |
| ormolu | n | brass resembling gold, lit. ground gold | AHD/W7 | |
| osteomalacia | n | deficiency disease, lit. bone-softness | AHD | |
| pall-mall | n | game with wooden ball driven by mallet | AHD/W7 | |
| schmaltz | n | florid/sentimental art/music | AHD/W7 | |
| smalt | n | deep blue pigment used as ceramic color | AHD/W7 | |
| smelt | n | small salmonoid fish | AHD/W7 | |
| smelt | vb.trans | to melt/fuse (ore) with accompanying chemical change | AHD/W7 | |
| West Germanic | ||||
| Old Frisian: | milde | adj | mild | ASD |
| milte | n.fem | spleen | ASD | |
| Middle Dutch: | milte | n | milt, spleen | W7 |
| Dutch: | molen | n | mill | ASD |
| molm | n | dust | GED | |
| Afrikaans: | mielie | n | mealie | AHD |
| Old Saxon: | melm | n.str.masc | dust | GED |
| mildi | adj | mild | ASD | |
| Low German: | smelten | vb | to smelt | W7 |
| Old High German: | maglio | n | mallet | W7 |
| malan | vb | to mill, grind | LRC | |
| malz | n | malt | W7 | |
| melm | n | dust | GED | |
| melo | n | meal | W7 | |
| milti | adj | mild, generous | ASD | |
| mil(t)zi | n.neut | spleen | ASD/W7 | |
| molta | n | mold | W7 | |
| muli, mulīn | n.fem | mill | ASD/W7 | |
| smelzan | vb | to melt | W7 | |
| Middle High German: | smalz | n | rendered fat | W7 |
| German: | Amblygonit | n | amblygonite | W7 |
| mahlen | vb | to mill | LRC | |
| Malz | n.neut | malt | LRC | |
| Mehl | n | meal | ASD | |
| mild | adj | mild | LRC | |
| Milz | n.fem | spleen | ASD | |
| Mühle | n.fem | mill | LRC | |
| Mulm | n.masc | dust | GED | |
| Schmalz | n.masc | rendered fat | LRC | |
| schmelzen | vb | to melt | LRC | |
| Yiddish: | blintse | n | blintze | W7 |
| shmalts | n | rendered fat | W7 | |
| North Germanic | ||||
| Old Norse: | málmr | n.masc | metal | LRC |
| mold | n.fem | mold | LRC | |
| mǫlr | n | moth | LRC | |
| Old Icelandic: | malmr | n | ore, metal | GED |
| Icelandic: | malt | n.neut | malt | ASD |
| mildr | adj | mild, munificent | ASD | |
| milti | n.neut | spleen | ASD | |
| mjöl | n | meal | ASD | |
| mold | n | mold | ASD | |
| mylna | n | mill | ASD | |
| Norwegian: | smelte | n | whiting | W7 |
| Danish: | møl | n | moth | TLL |
| Swedish: | malm | n | malm, sandy plain; ore | GED |
| East Germanic | ||||
| Gothic: | malan | vb | to mill, grind | LRC |
| malma | n.masc | malm, sand | GED | |
| malō | n | moth | LRC | |
| milds | adj | mild | ASD | |
| mulda | n | mold, dust | ASD | |
| Italic | ||||
| Latin: | amylum | n | amylum | AHD |
| blandior, blandiri | vb | to flatter, caress | W7 | |
| blandus | adj | soft, sweet; mild, flattering | W7 | |
| blennius | n.masc | a sea fish | W7 | |
| emolliens, emollientis | adj/vb.ptc | emollient | W7 | |
| emollio, emollīre | vb | to soften | W7 | |
| emolo, emolere | vb | to grind up | W7 | |
| emolumentum | n.neut | miller's fee | W7 | |
| immolo, immolare, immolavi, immolatus | vb | to sacrifice | W7 | |
| malacia | n.fem | softness, delicacy; calmness (of sea) | W7 | |
| malleus | n.masc | hammer | W7 | |
| miliarius | adj | re: millet | W7 | |
| milium | n.neut | millet | W7 | |
| mola | n.fem | mill, millstone | W7 | |
| molaris | adj | re: mill | W7 | |
| moles | n.fem | mass, exertion | W7 | |
| molliō, mollīre, mollīvī, mollītum | vb | to soften, moderate | LRC | |
| mollis | adj | soft | W7 | |
| Mollusca | n.neut.pl | mollusk | W7 | |
| molluscus | n.masc | soft animal | W7 | |
| molo, molere | vb | to mill, grind | W7 | |
| Vulgar Latin: | mollio, molliāre | vb | to soften | W7 |
| Late Latin: | molina | n.fem | mill | W7 |
| molinum | n.neut | millstone | W7 | |
| molinus | n.masc | of a mill, of a millstone | W7 | |
| Medieval Latin: | malleabilis | adj | easily hammered | W7 |
| malleō, malleāre | vb | to hammer | W7 | |
| New Latin: | amblyopia | n.fem | amblyopia | W7 |
| malleus | n.masc | a bone in the internal ear | W7 | |
| milium | n.neut | a small lump in the skin | W7 | |
| mola | n.fem | ocean sunfish | W7 | |
| Mollusca | n.fem | phylum name | W7 | |
| Portuguese: | milho | n | millet | AHD |
| Old French: | aumail | n | enamel | MEV |
| n.masc | maul, hammer, sledgehammer | W7 | ||
| maillet | n.masc.dim | hammer | W7 | |
| malleus | n.masc | hammer, sledgehammer | W7 | |
| munoier | n.masc | miller | AHD | |
| munoiere | n.fem | miller's wife | AHD | |
| Middle French: | blandir, blandiss- | vb | to make white | W7 |
| enamailler | vb | to (paint with) enamel | W7 | |
| maillet | n.masc | small club/hammer | W7 | |
| malleable | adj | easily hammered | W7 | |
| mil | n.masc | grain, millet | W7 | |
| millet | n.masc | grain, millet | W7 | |
| moillier | vb | to wet | W7 | |
| mole | n.fem | mass | W7 | |
| pallemaille | adv | pall-mall | W7 | |
| smalt | n.masc | smalt | W7 | |
| French: | meunière | adj | meuniere, re: miller's wife | AHD |
| mollusque | n.masc | mollusk | W7 | |
| moulin | n.masc | mill | W7 | |
| Old Italian: | molo | n.masc | mole | W7 |
| Italian: | pallamaglio | n.masc | pall-mall | W7 |
| Baltic | ||||
| Lithuanian: | blynai | n | blin, blintz | LRC |
| melù | vb | to mill, grind | LRC | |
| Slavic | ||||
| Old Church Slavonic: | meljǫ | vb | to mill, grind | LRC |
| mladьnьcь | n.masc | child | LRC | |
| Russian: | blin, blini | n | blin | W7 |
| blinets | n.dim | blintz | W7 | |
| Hellenic | ||||
| Homeric Greek: | μύλη | n.fem | (hand)mill | LRC |
| Greek: | amblygōnios | adj | obtuse-angled | W7 |
| amblys | adj | blunt | W7 | |
| amblyōpia | n.fem | dim eyesight | W7 | |
| ἄ-μῠλος | adj | ground by hand, lit. not mill-ground | AHD/LS | |
| μᾰλᾰκία | n.fem | softness, delicacy; calmness (of sea) | LS | |
| μᾰλᾰκός | adj | soft | LS | |
| malthakos | adj | soft | W7 | |
| melinē | n.fem | millet | W7 | |
| μύλη | n.fem | (hand)mill, millstone | LRC | |
| mōlos | n.masc | war; exertion; mole to enclose harbor | W7 | |
| Anatolian | ||||
| Hittite: | malla | vb | to mill, grind, thresh | LRC |
| Armenian | ||||
| Armenian: | malem | vb | to mill, grind, crush | LRC |
| Indic | ||||
| Sanskrit: | mlātá- | adj | soft-beaten | IEW |
| Tocharian | ||||
| Tocharian A: | malywät | vb | to mill, grind, crush | LRC |
Key to Part-of-Speech/Grammatical feature abbreviations:
| Abbrev. | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| adj | = | adjective |
| adv | = | adverb(ial) |
| dim | = | diminutive |
| fem | = | feminine (gender) |
| masc | = | masculine (gender) |
| n | = | noun |
| neut | = | neuter (gender) |
| pl | = | plural (number) |
| ptc | = | participle |
| str | = | strong (inflection) |
| trans | = | transitive |
| vb | = | verb |
Key to information Source codes (always with 'LRC' as editor):
| Code | Citation | |
|---|---|---|
| AHD | = | Calvert Watkins: The American Heritage Dictionary of Indo-European Roots, 2nd ed. (2000) |
| ASD | = | Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller: An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary (1898) |
| CDC | = | W.D. Whitney and B.E. Smith: The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia (1889-1911) |
| GED | = | Winfred P. Lehmann: A Gothic Etymological Dictionary (1986) |
| IEW | = | Julius Pokorny: Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (1959) |
| LRC | = | Linguistics Research Center, University of Texas, Austin |
| LS | = | Liddell and Scott: Greek-English Lexicon, 7th-9th ed's (1882-1940), rev. |
| MEV | = | J.R.R. Tolkien: A Middle English Vocabulary (1922) |
| TLL | = | Frederick Bodmer: The Loom of Language (1944) |
| W7 | = | Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary (1963) |
