entry
window
/ˈwɪndoʊ/An opening admitting light, air, or a view
From O.English, Proto-Germanic wind (Moving air) + O.English, Proto-Germanic eye (Eye).
from Middle English wyndowe, wyndown
from Old Norse vindauga (Old Danish vindue )
+1 more sourcefrom Middle English wyndowe, wyndown
Word Ancestry
from Middle English wyndowe, wyndown
from Old Norse vindauga (Old Danish vindue )
+1 more sourcefrom Middle English wyndowe, wyndown
Before glass became ordinary, a northern European house did not have a neat pane looking onto the street; it had a hole, often in the roof, through which wind could swagger in. Old Norse speakers called this a vindauga—literally a “wind-eye”—and English borrowed the idea around 1200 as wyndowe. Wait, really? English already had its own “eye-hole,” ēagþyrl, but the Viking phrase won, much as imported fashions often defeat perfectly serviceable local ones. The two pieces have surprising cousins: wind is related to words for blowing and even wend, while eye belongs to the family of optic, iris, and ogle. For centuries “window” meant an opening rather than a sheet of glass, and only later did it become the framed, glazed object we picture today—so every modern window still preserves the image of a wall growing an eye to let the wind look through.
The Story
Before glass became ordinary, a northern European house did not have a neat pane looking onto the street; it had a hole, often in the roof, through which wind could swagger in. Old Norse speakers called this a vindauga—literally a “wind-eye”—and English borrowed the idea around 1200 as wyndowe. Wait, really? English already had its own “eye-hole,” ēagþyrl, but the Viking phrase won, much as imported fashions often defeat perfectly serviceable local ones. The two pieces have surprising cousins: wind is related to words for blowing and even wend, while eye belongs to the family of optic, iris, and ogle. For centuries “window” meant an opening rather than a sheet of glass, and only later did it become the framed, glazed object we picture today—so every modern window still preserves the image of a wall growing an eye to let the wind look through.
Modern Usage
A derogatory term for a flirtatious woman, according to a slang entry
Kin & Kindred
From 'wind'·Moving air; a current of air
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'eye'·Eye; an opening resembling an eye
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Etymonline
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia