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English word origin

Etymology of aloft

From Old Norse á lopti (“in the sky”); equivalent to a- + loft.

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 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.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
adv

At, to, or in the air or sky. · Above, overhead, in a high place; up. · In the top, at the masthead, or on the higher yards or rigging.

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

From Old Norse á lopti (“in the sky”); equivalent to a- + loft.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Derivation mentioná loptinon · in the sky
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "á lopti",
        "t": "in the sky"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse á lopti (“in the sky”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "pre",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "a",
        "3": "loft"
      },
      "expansion": "a- + loft"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "á",
      "á#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "lopti",
      "lopt#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "a-",
      "a-#English"
    ],
    [
      "loft",
      "loft#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adv",
      "glosses": [
        "At, to, or in the air or sky.",
        "Above, overhead, in a high place; up.",
        "In the top, at the masthead, or on the higher yards or rigging."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "ec1e1291bc00cd1e150c0479995596da19d4eaa01f087b9bee5d0365ca7287cf",
      "rawRecordSha256": "0604672382a7af420005d5dc038cbb4997c0f29defc9e1e4caf97be4a6906d43",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 157150
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

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 aloft →

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-YWxvZnQ