German words from Middle High German
799 German words with Middle High German in their history, whether borrowed directly or passed on through other languages (page 7).
je
It is inherited from Middle High German ie, inherited from Old High German io, inherited from Proto-Germanic *aiwin (“always, ever”). The same adverb is Old Saxon eo, Old Norse æ, Old English ā and…
jeder
It is inherited from Middle High German ieweder, inherited from Old High German iowedar, older eohwedar and eogiwedar, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *aiwin-gi-hweþera- (“each of two”). The same…
jedoch
It is inherited from Middle High German iedoch, inherited from Old High German iodoh, from Old High German io (“ever, always”) + doh (“yet, though”), the forerunners of je and doch. The same…
jemand
It is inherited from Middle High German ieman, inherited from Old High German ioman, from Old High German io (“ever, always”) + man (“man, person”), the ancestors of je and Mann, so at first “any…
jener
It is inherited from Middle High German jener, inherited from Old High German jenēr, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *jain, inherited from Proto-Germanic *jainaz (“that over there”). Related…
jetzt
It is inherited from Middle High German iezuo (“just now, presently”), inherited from Old High German iozuo (“at once; further”), formed from Old High German io (“ever, always”) + zuo (“to”), that…
jüdisch
It is inherited from Middle High German jüdisch, inherited from Old High German judeisc, borrowed from Latin iūdaeus (“Jewish, Judaean”), with the Latin ending replaced by the suffix -isc, which…
Jugend
It is inherited from Middle High German jugent, inherited from Old High German jugund, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *jugunþi (“youth”). The same word is Old Saxon juguð, Old English geoguþ…
jugendlich
It is inherited from Middle High German jugentlich, inherited from Old High German jugundlīh, an adjective formed with the suffix -lich on Jugend “youth”. The noun is jugund, from Proto-West…
jung
It is inherited from Middle High German junc, inherited from Old High German jung, inherited from Proto-Germanic *jungaz (“young”). The same word is Gothic 𐌾𐌿𐌲𐌲𐍃 (juggs), Old Saxon jung, Old Norse…
Junge
It is inherited from Middle High German junge (“youth, young man”), inherited from Old High German jungo (“young man”), the weak masculine form of the adjective jung used as a noun. In the sense…
Kampf
It is inherited from Middle High German kampf, inherited from Old High German kampf (“single combat, duel”), borrowed from Latin campus (“field, battlefield”). Pfeifer and the EWA date the borrowing…
kämpfen
It is inherited from Middle High German kempfen, inherited from Old High German kempfan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kampijan (“to battle”), formed from the noun Kampf, Old High German…
Karte
It is inherited from Middle High German karte (“stiff sheet of paper”), borrowed from French carte (“stiff sheet”), borrowed in the 14th century. The French word goes back to Latin charta (“sheet of…
kaufen
It is inherited from Middle High German koufen, inherited from Old High German koufōn, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kaupōn, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kaupōną (“to trade, buy”). The same…
kaum
It is inherited from Middle High German kūme, inherited from Old High German kūmo (“with difficulty, hardly”), the adverb of the adjective Proto-Germanic *kūmaz (“weak, miserable”). The same adverb…
kein
It is inherited from Middle High German kein, a shortening of nekein and enkein, inherited from Old High German nihein, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *nehwain, originally “and not one”. The Old…
kennen
It is inherited from Middle High German kennen, inherited from Old High German kennen, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kannijan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kannijaną (“to make known”). The…
Kind
It is inherited from Middle High German kint, inherited from Old High German kind, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kind, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kinþą (“child”). Kluge and Pfeifer take…
Kirche
It is inherited from Middle High German kirche, inherited from Old High German kirihha, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kirikā, borrowed from Ancient Greek κυρικόν (kūrikón, “house of God”), a…
klar
It is inherited from Middle High German klār, borrowed from Middle Dutch claer, under the influence of Old French cler, from Latin clārus (“loud, clear-sounding; bright, clear; famous”). It spread…
klein
It is inherited from Middle High German kleine, inherited from Old High German kleini, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *klainī (“fine, dainty”). The same West Germanic adjective is Old Saxon…
kommen
It is inherited from Middle High German komen, inherited from Old High German queman, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kweman, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kwemaną, from Proto-Indo-European…
König
It is inherited from Middle High German künec, inherited from Old High German kuning, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kuning, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kuningaz (“king”). The same word is…
können
It is inherited from Middle High German kunnen or künnen, inherited from Old High German kunnan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kunnan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kunnaną (“to know, be…
Kopf
It is inherited from Middle High German kopf (“drinking vessel, skull, head”), inherited from Old High German kopf (“cup, bowl”), which Kluge, Pfeifer and the Duden dictionary take as an early loan…
kosten
1. The verb meaning “to cost” is inherited from Middle High German kosten, borrowed from Old French coster (“to cost”) (now French coûter). Pfeifer dates the borrowing to about 1200, on the Middle…
Kosten
It is the plural form, inherited from Middle High German koste (“value, price, expense”), inherited from Old High German kosta (“value”), borrowed from Medieval Latin costa (“expense”). Medieval…
Kraft
It is inherited from Middle High German kraft, inherited from Old High German kraft, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kraftu, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kraftuz (“strength, power”). Kluge…
Kreis
It is inherited from Middle High German kreiz, inherited from Old High German kreiz (“circle, circuit, district”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *krait, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kraitaz…
Krieg
It is inherited from Middle High German kriec, inherited from Old High German krieg (also kreg), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *krīg. The word is found only in German and Dutch, with Middle Low…
kündigen
It is inherited from Middle High German kündigen (“to make known, proclaim”), formed from kündec (“known; knowing”) (modern kundig). The base is the adjective kund (“known”), kunt, Old High German…
künftig
It is inherited from Middle High German künftic, inherited from Old High German kumftīg, formed from Old High German kumft (“coming, arrival”) + -īg: properly “about to come, characterised by…
Kunst
It is inherited from Middle High German kunst, inherited from Old High German kunst, inherited from Proto-Germanic *kunstiz (“knowledge, ability”). It is an abstract noun of the verb können, formed…
kurz
It is inherited from Middle High German kurz, inherited from Old High German kurz, borrowed from Latin curtus (“shortened, docked, mutilated”), borrowed before the High German consonant shift, so…
Lage
It is inherited from Middle High German lāge, inherited from Old High German lāga (“ambush, trap”), an abstract noun of liegen with a different vowel grade. Duden calls it a word found only in…
Land
It is inherited from Middle High German lant, inherited from Old High German lant, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *land, inherited from Proto-Germanic *landą (“land”). The same word is Gothic…
lang
It is inherited from Middle High German lanc, inherited from Old High German lang, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *lang, inherited from Proto-Germanic *langaz (“long”). The same word is Gothic…
lange
It is inherited from Middle High German lange, also langen, inherited from Old High German lango (“for a long time, long ago”), the adverb of the adjective lang. The adjective is lang, from…
langsam
It is inherited from Middle High German lancsam, inherited from Old High German langsam, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *langasam (“lengthy, long-lasting”), formed from lang with the suffix…
lassen
It is inherited from Middle High German lāzen, inherited from Old High German lāzan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *lātan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *lētaną (“to let, leave behind”)…
Lauf
It is inherited from Middle High German louf, inherited from Old High German hlouf, inherited from Proto-Germanic *hlaupą (“leap; course, run”), the noun of the verb laufen. The same noun is Middle…
laufen
It is inherited from Middle High German loufen, inherited from Old High German hloufan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *hlaupan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *hlaupaną (“to leap forward”)…
laut
It is inherited from Middle High German lūt, inherited from Old High German lūt, also hlūt and chlūd, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *hlūd (“loud”). The same adjective is Old English hlūd, Old…
lauten
It is inherited from Middle High German lūten (“to sound, ring”), inherited from Old High German hlūtēn, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *hlūdēn (“to sound”), a verb formed from the adjective…
leben
It is inherited from Middle High German leben, inherited from Old High German lebēn, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *libbjan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *libjaną (“to live”). Kluge and…
Leben
It is inherited from Middle High German leben, inherited from Old High German lebēn (“life, way of life”), the infinitive of the verb leben used as a noun. In the older language the word for “life”…
lediglich
It is inherited from Middle High German ledeclīche (“freely, without hindrance”), formed from the adjective Middle High German ledic (“free, unhindered”), now ledig, with the suffix -lich. Kluge…
legen
It is inherited from Middle High German legen, inherited from Old High German leggen, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *laggjan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *lagjaną (“to lay”). The same verb is…
Lehrer
It is inherited from Middle High German lērære, inherited from Old High German lērāri, the agent noun of lehren (“to teach”), lēren. The same formation is Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍃𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐍃 (laisareis) Old Saxon…
leicht
It is inherited from Middle High German līht(e), inherited from Old High German līhti, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *lį̄ht, inherited from Proto-Germanic *linhtaz (“light in weight”). The same…
leider
It is inherited from Middle High German leider, inherited from Old High German leidōr, leidor, originally the comparative of the adverb leido (leide), which goes with the adjective leid. The…
leisten
It is inherited from Middle High German leisten, inherited from Old High German leisten, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *laistijan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *laistijaną (“to follow”). The…
leiten
It is inherited from Middle High German leiten, inherited from Old High German leiten, also leitōn, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *laidijan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *laidijaną (“to cause…
lernen
It is inherited from Middle High German lernen, inherited from Old High German lernēn (Upper German lirnēn), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *liʀnōn (“to learn”). The same verb is Old Saxon…
lesen
It is inherited from Middle High German lesen, inherited from Old High German lesan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *lesaną (“to gather, pick”). The same strong verb is Gothic 𐌻𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌽 (lisan, “to…
letzt
It is inherited from Middle High German lezzist, contracted lest, inherited from Old High German lezzist, beside lazzōst, the superlative of the adjective that survives as lass “weary, slack” (laz)…
Leute
It is inherited from Middle High German liute, inherited from Old High German liuti, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *liudi, inherited from Proto-Germanic *liudīz (“people”), the plural of a noun…
Licht
It is inherited from Middle High German lieht, inherited from Old High German lioht, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *leuht, inherited from Proto-Germanic *leuhtą (“light”), the adjective licht…
lieb
It is inherited from Middle High German liep, inherited from Old High German liob, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *leub, inherited from Proto-Germanic *leubaz (“dear, beloved”). Kluge takes the…