German words from Old High German
623 German words with Old High German in their history, whether borrowed directly or passed on through other languages (page 7).
nah
It is inherited from Middle High German nāch, inherited from Old High German nāh, inherited from Proto-Germanic *nēhwaz (“near”). The same word is Gothic 𐌽𐌴𐍈𐌰 (neƕa, “near”), Old Norse ná- (in…
Nähe
It is inherited from Middle High German næhe, inherited from Old High German nāhī, the abstract noun of nah (Old High German nāh). The adjective goes back to Proto-Germanic *nēhwaz (“near”), also…
Name
It is inherited from Middle High German name, inherited from Old High German namo, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *namō, inherited from Proto-Germanic *namô (“name”). The same word is Gothic…
nämlich
It is inherited from Middle High German nemelīche, also namelīche, the adverb of namelich (“named, known, explicit”), inherited from Old High German namalīh (“important, known”), formed from Old…
Natur
It is inherited from Middle High German natūre, inherited from Old High German natūra, borrowed from Latin nātūra (“birth; nature, character”), from nātus (“born”), the past participle of nāscor…
natürlich
It is inherited from Middle High German natiurlich, inherited from Old High German natūrlīh, formed from Old High German natūra + -līh in Old High German, the base being the noun that became Natur…
neben
It is inherited from Middle High German neben, inherited from Old High German neben, shortened from Middle High German eneben and Old High German ineben. That form grew out of the phrase Old High…
nehmen
It is inherited from Middle High German nemen, inherited from Old High German neman, inherited from Proto-Germanic *nemaną (“to take”), a strong verb. The same word is Gothic 𐌽𐌹𐌼𐌰𐌽 (niman), Old…
nein
It is inherited from Middle High German nein, inherited from Old High German nein, contracted from the negative particle ni (“not”) and the neuter of ein, so that it meant “not one”. The same…
nennen
It is inherited from Middle High German nennen, inherited from Old High German nemnen, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *namnijan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *namnijaną (“to name”), a verb…
neu
It is inherited from Middle High German niuwe, inherited from Old High German niuwi, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *niwi, inherited from Proto-Germanic *niwjaz (“new”). The same word is Gothic…
neun
It is inherited from Middle High German niun, inherited from Old High German niun, inherited from Proto-Germanic *newun (“nine”). The same word is Gothic 𐌽𐌹𐌿𐌽 (niun), which had two syllables, Old…
nicht
It is inherited from Middle High German niht, inherited from Old High German niowiht, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *naiwwiht. It was fused from a phrase that Kluge reconstructs as…
nie
It is inherited from Middle High German nie, inherited from Old High German nio, a fusion of the negative particle and the adverb now je: from Old High German ni (“not”) + io (“ever”). The same…
niemand
It is inherited from Middle High German nieman, inherited from Old High German nioman (“nobody”), the negative of jemand. The Old High German word is compounded of the negative particle Old High…
noch
1. The adverb “still, yet” is inherited from Middle High German noch, inherited from Old High German noh, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *noh, inherited from Proto-Germanic *nuh. The same word…
nötig
It is inherited from Middle High German nœtic, inherited from Old High German nōtag (“forced, urgent, needy”), an adjective formed from the noun Not “need, compulsion” with the suffix -ig. The same…
nun
It is inherited from Middle High German nū, nu, inherited from Old High German nu, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *nū, inherited from Proto-Germanic *nu (“now”). The same word is Gothic 𐌽𐌿 (nu)…
nur
It is inherited from Middle High German nūr, a Central German form, contracted from older newære, inherited from Old High German niwāri, literally “it were not”. The Old High German phrase joins the…
nutzen
It is inherited from Middle High German nutzen (also nützen), inherited from Old High German nuzzōn (“to enjoy, spend”), inherited from Proto-Germanic *nutōną (“to make use of”). Pfeifer derives the…
ob
1. The conjunction is inherited from Middle High German obe, inherited from Old High German ibu, with the later Old High German variants ubi and oba, which arose by a shift of the vowels. The same…
oben
It is inherited from Middle High German oben, inherited from Old High German obana (“from above; above”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *obanā, inherited from Proto-Germanic *ubanē (“from…
oberer
It is inherited from Middle High German obere, inherited from Old High German obaro (“upper, higher”), a comparative formed with an r-suffix from the adverb and preposition ob. The same formation is…
oder
It is inherited from Middle High German oder, inherited from Old High German odar, an altered form of the older odo, which took its final /r/ on the model of aber and weder. Pfeifer and the Duden…
offen
It is inherited from Middle High German offen, inherited from Old High German offan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *opan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *upanaz (“open”). The same adjective is…
offenbar
It is inherited from Middle High German offenbære, inherited from Old High German offanbāri (“evident, manifest”), a derivative of offen in the sense “standing before one's eyes”, in which -bāri…
öffentlich
It is inherited from Middle High German offenlich, inherited from Old High German offanlīh, formed from Old High German offan + -līh; the base is the adjective now offen. The same formation is Old…
Öffentlichkeit
It is formed from German öffentlich + -keit in the 18th century, as a German replacement for Publizität. The adjective öffentlich is inherited from Middle High German offenlich, inherited from Old…
öffnen
It is inherited from Middle High German offenen, inherited from Old High German offanōn, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *opanōn, inherited from Proto-Germanic *upanōną (“to open”), a verb formed…
oft
It is inherited from Middle High German ofte, inherited from Old High German ofto, inherited from Proto-Germanic *uftō (“often”). The same adverb is Gothic 𐌿𐍆𐍄𐌰 (ufta), Old Norse opt, Old English…
ohne
It is inherited from Middle High German āne, inherited from Old High German ānu, inherited from Proto-Germanic *ēnu (“without”). Old High German also had āno and āna. The same word is Old Saxon āno…
Opfer
It is inherited from Middle High German opfer, inherited from Old High German opfar, formed in Old High German from the verb opfern. The same formation is Old Saxon opper and Middle Low German opper…
Ort
It is inherited from Middle High German ort, inherited from Old High German ort (“point, tip”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *oʀd, inherited from Proto-Germanic *uzdaz (“point”). The same word…
Osten
It is inherited from Middle High German ōsten, inherited from Old High German ōstan, a noun made from the adverb of direction ōstana (“from the east”). The adverb is matched by Old Saxon ōstana…
Pfarrer
It is inherited from Middle High German pharrære, inherited from Old High German pharrāri, an agent noun from Old High German pharra (“parish”) + -āri, from Pfarre “parish”; Kluge glosses it as “the…
Punkt
It is inherited from Middle High German punct, inherited from Old High German puncto, borrowed from Late Latin pūnctus, which stands for classical Latin pūnctum (“point; prick”), the neuter past…
Quelle
It is inherited from Middle High German quelle, inherited from Old High German quella (“spring”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kwalljā (“spring, well”). The same word is Old Saxon quella…
Rahmen
It is inherited from Middle High German rame (“support, frame”), inherited from Old High German rama (“support, column”). Related forms are Old Saxon hrama (“rack for torture”), Middle Low German…
Rat
It is inherited from Middle High German rāt, inherited from Old High German rāt (“advice; supplies”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *rād, inherited from Proto-Germanic *rēdaz (“advice…
Raum
It is inherited from Middle High German rūm, inherited from Old High German rūm, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *rūm, inherited from Proto-Germanic *rūmą (“room, open space”). The noun is a…
rechnen
It is inherited from Middle High German rechenen, inherited from Old High German rehhanōn (“to order, prepare”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *rekanōn. The same West Germanic verb is Old…
recht
It is inherited from Middle High German reht, inherited from Old High German reht, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *reht (“right, straight”), inherited from Proto-Germanic *rehtaz (“right…
Recht
It is inherited from Middle High German reht, inherited from Old High German reht, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *reht, inherited from Proto-Germanic *rehtą (“right, privilege”), the neuter of…
rechts
It is the adverbial genitive of recht, from German recht + -s, formed as the opposite of links. The right side is the “correct” one, the right hand the skilful one, as against the left. The…
Rede
It is inherited from Middle High German rede, inherited from Old High German reda, inherited from Proto-Germanic *raþjǭ (“account, reckoning”). Old High German also has the forms redia and radia…
reden
It is inherited from Middle High German reden, inherited from Old High German redōn (also rediōn), derived from the noun Rede, whose Old High German form is reda. The same verb is Old Saxon reðiōn…
Regel
It is inherited from Middle High German regel(e), inherited from Old High German regula, borrowed from Medieval Latin regula (“monastic rule”), borrowed first as a word of monastic life. The source…
reichen
It is inherited from Middle High German reichen, inherited from Old High German reihhen (“to extend, reach”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *raikijan (“to reach”). A by-form Old High German…
Reihe
It is inherited from Middle High German rīhe (“row, line, narrow passage”), inherited from Old High German *rīha, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *rīhu. Beside it, with grammatical change of /h/…
rein
It is inherited from Middle High German reine, inherited from Old High German reini, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *hrainī, inherited from Proto-Germanic *hrainiz (“clean, pure”). The same…
Reise
It is inherited from Middle High German reise, inherited from Old High German reisa, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *raisu (“journey”). Kluge traces it to Proto-Germanic *raisō (“departure…
retten
It is inherited from Middle High German retten, inherited from Old High German retten (also hretten), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *hraddjan (“to save, rescue”). The verb is found only in West…
richten
It is inherited from Middle High German rihten, inherited from Old High German rihten, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *rihtijan (“to straighten, set right”), inherited from Proto-Germanic…
Richter
It is inherited from Middle High German rihtære (also rihter), inherited from Old High German rihtāri (“judge, ruler”), formed from Old High German rihten (“to judge”) + -āri: an agent noun of the…
richtig
It is inherited from Middle High German rihtec, inherited from Old High German rihtīg, formed with the suffix -ig. Since the adjective first meant “straight, aligned by the plumb line”, Kluge and…
rot
It is inherited from Middle High German rōt, inherited from Old High German rōt, inherited from Proto-Germanic *raudaz (“red”). The same adjective is Gothic 𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌸𐍃 (rauþs), Old Norse rauðr, Old…
rufen
It is inherited from Middle High German ruofen, inherited from Old High German (h)ruofan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *hrōpan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *hrōpaną (“to cry out, call”). The…
Sache
It is inherited from Middle High German sache, inherited from Old High German sahha, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *saku, inherited from Proto-Germanic *sakō (“lawsuit, dispute, cause”). The…
sagen
It is inherited from Middle High German sagen, inherited from Old High German sagēn, inherited from Proto-Germanic *sagēn (“to say”). The other West Germanic and Norse forms go back to a variant…
sammeln
It is inherited from Middle High German samelen, a late Middle High German form that arose by dissimilation of /n/ to /l/ from the older samenen, inherited from Old High German samanōn (“to gather…