*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of clad

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gley-der. Proto-Germanic *klaiþijaną Proto-West Germanic *klaiþijan Old English clǣþan Middle English clethen Middle English clad English clad From Middle English clad, cladde, cled(e)

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
verb

simple past and past participle of clothe

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gley-der. Proto-Germanic *klaiþijaną Proto-West Germanic *klaiþijan Old English clǣþan Middle English clethen Middle English clad English clad From Middle English clad, cladde, cled(e), cledde, past tense and past participle forms of clethen (“(also figurative) to put clothing on, clothe, dress; to provide clothing to; to arm, equip; to cover, envelop; to conceal; to adorn”), from Old English clǣþan (past tense clǣþde, *clædde), from Proto-West Germanic *klaiþijan, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gleh₁y-, *gley- (“to adhere, cling, stick to”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
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      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
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      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *gley-der.\nProto-Germanic *klaiþijaną\nProto-West Germanic *klaiþijan\nOld English clǣþan\nMiddle English clethen\nMiddle English clad\nEnglish clad\n[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*gley-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*klaiþijaną\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*klaiþijan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"clǣþan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"clethen\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"clad\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"clad\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"clad\">"
    },
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      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
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        "2": "enm",
        "3": "clad"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English clad"
    },
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      "name": "glossary",
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        "1": "past tense"
      },
      "expansion": "past tense"
    },
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      },
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    },
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      },
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    },
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    }
  ],
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      "*gley-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gley-"
    ],
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      "*klaiþijaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/klaiþijaną"
    ],
    [
      "*klaiþijan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/klaiþijan"
    ],
    [
      "clǣþan",
      "clæþan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "clethen",
      "clethen#Middle_English"
    ],
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      "clad",
      "clad#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "clad",
      "clad#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cladde",
      "cladde#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cled(e)",
      "cled#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cledde",
      "cledde#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "clethen",
      "clethen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "clǣþan",
      "clæþan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "clǣþde",
      "clæþde#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*clædde",
      "Reconstruction:Old English/clædde"
    ],
    [
      "*klaiþijan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/klaiþijan"
    ],
    [
      "*gleh₁y-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gleh₁y-"
    ],
    [
      "*gley-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gley-"
    ]
  ],
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  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
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        "simple past and past participle of clothe"
      ],
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
adj

Wearing clothing or some other covering (for example, an armour) on the body; clothed, dressed. · Covered, enveloped in, or surrounded by a cladding, or a specified material or substance. · Adorned, ornamented.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English clad(d), cladde, clade, past tense and past participle forms of clathen, clothen (“to put clothing on, clothe, dress”), from *clāþian (“to clothe”) (past participle ġeclāded, ġeclaþed, ġeclaþod), from clāþ, clǣþ (“cloth; (plural) clothes”); see further at etymology 1.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentioncladenm
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "clad",
        "4": "clad(d)"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English clad(d)"
    },
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      "name": "glossary",
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        "1": "past tense"
      },
      "expansion": "past tense"
    },
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      },
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    },
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      "name": "sup",
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        "1": "1"
      },
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    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "clad(d)",
      "clad#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cladde",
      "cladde#Middle_English"
    ],
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      "clade",
      "clade#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "clathen",
      "clathen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "clothen",
      "clothen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "*clāþian",
      "Reconstruction:Old English/claþian"
    ],
    [
      "ġeclāded",
      "gecladed#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "ġeclaþed",
      "geclaþed#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "ġeclaþod",
      "geclaþod#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "clāþ",
      "claþ#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "clǣþ",
      "clæþ#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "etymology 1",
      "#Etymology 1"
    ]
  ],
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
verb

To clothe, to dress. · To cover with a cladding or another material (for example, insulation). · To imbue (with a specified quality); to envelop or surround.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Apparently derived from clad (adjective); see etymology 2. Uses of clad as the simple past and past participle form of clad are indistinguishable from uses of the word as the simple past and past participle form of clothe.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "#Etymology 2"
    ],
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      "clothe#English"
    ]
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      "pos": "verb",
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for clad →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Y2xhZA