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: mreg̑hu-, mr̥g̑hu- 'brief, short'
Semantic Field(s): Short
Indo-European Reflexes:
| Family/Language | Reflex(es) | PoS/Gram. | Gloss | Source(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | ||||
| Old English: | merge, mirige, myrge | adj | merry | W7 |
| mir(i)gþ, myr(ig)þ, mirhþ | n.fem | mirth | ASD/W7 | |
| Middle English: | abbreviaten | vb | to abbreviate | W7 |
| abreg(g)en | vb | to abridge | W7 | |
| brace | n | brace | W7 | |
| bracen | vb | to brace | W7 | |
| bref | n | brief | W7 | |
| breff, breve | adj | brief, meager | MEV/W7 | |
| embracen | vb | to embrace | W7 | |
| mery | adj | merry | W7 | |
| mirth | n | mirth | W7 | |
| English: | abbreviate | vb.trans | to shorten, make brief | AHD/W7 |
| abridge | vb.trans | to deprive | AHD/W7 | |
| amphibrach | n | metrical foot: short/unstressed + long/stressed + short/unstressed syllables | AHD/W7 | |
| brace | n | two of same kind | AHD/W7 | |
| brace | vb.arch | to bind, fasten tightly | W7 | |
| Bracegirdle | prop.n | hobbit surname in Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings | LRC | |
| bracero | n | Mexican laborer | AHD | |
| brachium | n | upper part of arm/forelimb (shoulder to elbow) | AHD/W7 | |
| brachy- | pfx | short | AHD/W7 | |
| brassard | n | armor to protect arm | AHD/W7 | |
| brassiere | n | woman's close-fitting undergarment with cups for bust support | AHD/W7 | |
| brief | adj | short (in extent/duration) | AHD/W7 | |
| brief | n | official letter/mandate | AHD/W7 | |
| brumal | adj | re: winter | AHD | |
| embrace | vb | to hug, clasp in arms | AHD/W7 | |
| Merry | prop.n | hobbit nickname in Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings | LRC | |
| merry | adj | delightful, giving pleasure | AHD/W7 | |
| mirth | n | gladness/gaiety shown by/accompanied with laughter | AHD/W7 | |
| pretzel | n | brittle glazed/salted cracker | AHD/W7 | |
| tribrach | n | metrical foot: three short syllables | AHD/W7 | |
| West Germanic | ||||
| Old High German: | murg | adj | short | W7 |
| German: | Brezel | n.fem | pretzel | W7 |
| Italic | ||||
| Latin: | amphibrachys | adj | short at both ends | W7 |
| bracchia | n.neut.pl | arms | W7 | |
| bracchiatus | adj | having branches like arms | W7 | |
| bracchium | n.neut | arm | W7 | |
| brevis, brevis, breve | adj | brief | W7 | |
| brūma | n | winter: season of shortest day | AHD | |
| brūmālis | adj | brumal | AHD | |
| tribrachys | adj | re: three arms | W7 | |
| Late Latin: | abbrevio, abrevio, abbreviare, abbreviavi, abbreviatus | vb | to abbreviate | W7 |
| Portuguese: | breve | adj | brief | TLL |
| Spanish: | bracero | n | laborer, bracero | AHD |
| brazo | n | arm | AHD | |
| breve | adj | brief | TLL | |
| Old French: | abri(d)gier | vb | to abridge | CDC |
| brace | n.fem | two arms | W7 | |
| braciere | n.fem | arm protector | W7 | |
| bras | n.masc | arm | W7 | |
| bref | adj | brief, meager | MEV | |
| embracier | vb | to embrace | W7 | |
| Middle French: | abregier | vb | to abbreviate | W7 |
| brace | n.fem | two arms | W7 | |
| brassal | n.masc | brassard | W7 | |
| br(i)ef | adj | brief, short | W7 | |
| embracer | vb | to embrace | W7 | |
| French: | brassard | n.masc | brassard | W7 |
| brassière | n.fem | brassiere | W7 | |
| bref | adj | brief | TLL | |
| Provençal: | abrevjar | vb | to abridge | CDC |
| Old Italian: | bracciale | n.masc | brassard | W7 |
| braccio | n.masc | arm | W7 | |
| Italian: | breve | adj | brief | TLL |
| Hellenic | ||||
| Greek: | amphibrachys | adj | short at both ends | W7 |
| brachiōn | n.masc | arm | W7 | |
| brachys, brachyos | adj | short | W7 | |
| tribrachys | adj | having three short syllables | W7 | |
Key to Part-of-Speech/Grammatical feature abbreviations:
| Abbrev. | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| adj | = | adjective |
| arch | = | archaic |
| fem | = | feminine (gender) |
| masc | = | masculine (gender) |
| n | = | noun |
| neut | = | neuter (gender) |
| pfx | = | prefix |
| pl | = | plural (number) |
| prop | = | proper |
| 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) |
| LRC | = | Linguistics Research Center, University of Texas, Austin |
| 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) |
