*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of abut

From Middle English abutten, from Medieval Latin abuttare and Old French abuter, aboter, abouter (“to touch at one end, to come to an end, aim, reach”), from Old French but (“end, aim, purpose”); akin to Old Norse butr (

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 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

To touch by means of a mutual border, edge or end; to border on; to lie adjacent (to); to be contiguous (said of an area of land) · To border upon; be next to; abut on; be adjacent to.

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

From Middle English abutten, from Medieval Latin abuttare and Old French abuter, aboter, abouter (“to touch at one end, to come to an end, aim, reach”), from Old French but (“end, aim, purpose”); akin to Old Norse butr (“piece of wood”). Equivalent to a- (“to”) + butt (“boundary mark”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionabuttenenm
  • Derivation mentionabuterfro
  • Derivation mentionbutfro
  • Cognate mentionbutrnon
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "abutten"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English abutten"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la-med",
        "3": "abuttare"
      },
      "expansion": "Medieval Latin abuttare"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "abuter"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French abuter"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "but",
        "4": "",
        "5": "end, aim, purpose"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French but (“end, aim, purpose”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "non",
        "2": "butr",
        "3": "",
        "4": "piece of wood"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse butr (“piece of wood”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "prefix",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "a",
        "3": "butt",
        "t1": "to",
        "t2": "boundary mark"
      },
      "expansion": "a- (“to”) + butt (“boundary mark”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "abutten",
      "abutten#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "abuttare",
      "abuttare#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "abuter",
      "abuter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "aboter",
      "aboter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "abouter",
      "abouter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "but",
      "but#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "butr",
      "butr#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "a-",
      "a-#English"
    ],
    [
      "butt",
      "butt#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To touch by means of a mutual border, edge or end; to border on; to lie adjacent (to); to be contiguous (said of an area of land)",
        "To border upon; be next to; abut on; be adjacent to."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive",
        "transitive"
      ],
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  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To lean against on one end; to end on, of a part of a building or wall.

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

From Middle English abutten, from Old French aboter (“to touch at one end, border on”), abouter (“to join end to end”), abuter (“to buttress, to put an end to”), from a- (“towards”) + bout (“end”), boter, bouter (“to strike”), buter (“to strike, finish”). Equivalent to a- (“towards, change to”) + butt (“push”)

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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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "abutten"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English abutten"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "aboter",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to touch at one end, border on"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French aboter (“to touch at one end, border on”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "prefix",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "a",
        "3": "butt",
        "t1": "towards, change to",
        "t2": "push"
      },
      "expansion": "a- (“towards, change to”) + butt (“push”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "abutten",
      "abutten#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "aboter",
      "aboter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "abouter",
      "abouter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "abuter",
      "abuter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "a-",
      "a-#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "bout",
      "bout#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "boter",
      "boter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "bouter",
      "bouter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "buter",
      "buter#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "a-",
      "a-#English"
    ],
    [
      "butt",
      "butt#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To lean against on one end; to end on, of a part of a building or wall."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ],
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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 abut →

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-YWJ1dA