entry
kill
/kɪl/Cause death or bring something to an end
From Germanic, probably from Proto-Germanic kill (Strike or pierce violently).
from PIE root *gwele- "to throw, reach," with extended sense "to pierce." Related: Killed ; killing . The meaning "to...
from Proto-Germanic *kwaljanan (source also of Old English cwelan "to die," cwalu "violent death;" Old Saxon quellian...
from Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil...
from Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil...
Word Ancestry
from PIE root *gwele- "to throw, reach," with extended sense "to pierce." Related: Killed ; killing . The meaning "to...
from Proto-Germanic *kwaljanan (source also of Old English cwelan "to die," cwalu "violent death;" Old Saxon quellian...
from Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil...
from Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil...
Before kill became the blunt little verb we use for everything from murder to switching off a computer, it may have described the physical violence of a blow. The suspected ancestor is Proto-Indo-European *gwele-, “to throw” or “reach,” with an extra-fearsome twist: “to pierce.” That same ancient root may also lurk behind quell, ballistic, ballista, and even hyperbole—an astonishing family reunion of thrown objects, arguments, and death blows. By about 1200, Middle English killen meant “to strike, beat, or cut”; roughly a century later, the verb had settled into its deadly modern sense. The history is not perfectly tidy: some scholars connect it directly to Old English cwellan, while another proposal links it to Old Norse kolla, “to hit on the head.” Either way, the word began with impact before it acquired its final consequence: first the blow, then the silence.
The Story
Before kill became the blunt little verb we use for everything from murder to switching off a computer, it may have described the physical violence of a blow. The suspected ancestor is Proto-Indo-European *gwele-, “to throw” or “reach,” with an extra-fearsome twist: “to pierce.” That same ancient root may also lurk behind quell, ballistic, ballista, and even hyperbole—an astonishing family reunion of thrown objects, arguments, and death blows. By about 1200, Middle English killen meant “to strike, beat, or cut”; roughly a century later, the verb had settled into its deadly modern sense. The history is not perfectly tidy: some scholars connect it directly to Old English cwellan, while another proposal links it to Old Norse kolla, “to hit on the head.” Either way, the word began with impact before it acquired its final consequence: first the blow, then the silence.
Modern Usage
In documented regional slang, an exclamation of excitement or shock, or an expression of agreement.
Notable References
- Urban Dictionary entries describing “kill” as agreement and as an excited or shocked reaction
Kin & Kindred
From 'kill'·Strike or pierce violently; cause death
Cognates
Related words in other languages
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Etymonline
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wiktionary