*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of broth

From Middle English broth, from Old English broþ (“broth”), from Proto-West Germanic *broþ (“broth”), from Proto-Germanic *bruþą (“broth”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to seethe, roil, brew”). By surface analysi

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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 ↗
noun

Water in which food (meat, vegetable, etc.) has been boiled. · A soup made from broth and other ingredients such as vegetables, herbs or diced meat.

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

From Middle English broth, from Old English broþ (“broth”), from Proto-West Germanic *broþ (“broth”), from Proto-Germanic *bruþą (“broth”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to seethe, roil, brew”). By surface analysis, brew + -th (abstract nominal suffix).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Root classification mention*bʰrewh₁-ine-pro
  • Inherited-form mentionbrothenm
  • Inherited-form mentionbroþang · broth
  • Inherited-form mention*broþgmw-pro · broth
  • Inherited-form mention*bruþągem-pro · broth
  • Derivation mention*bʰrewh₁-ine-pro · to seethe, roil, brew
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*bʰrewh₁-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "broth",
        "id": "broth"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English broth"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "broþ",
        "t": "broth"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English broþ (“broth”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*broþ",
        "t": "broth"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *broþ (“broth”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*bruþą",
        "t": "broth"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *bruþą (“broth”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*bʰrewh₁-",
        "t": "to seethe, roil, brew"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to seethe, roil, brew”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "surf",
      "args": {
        "1": "+suf",
        "2": "en",
        "3": "brew",
        "4": "th",
        "id2": "abstract nominal",
        "pos2": "abstract nominal suffix"
      },
      "expansion": "By surface analysis, brew + -th (abstract nominal suffix)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "broth",
      "broth#Middle_English:_broth"
    ],
    [
      "broþ",
      "broþ#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*broþ",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/broþ"
    ],
    [
      "*bruþą",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bruþą"
    ],
    [
      "*bʰrewh₁-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰrewh₁-"
    ],
    [
      "brew",
      "brew#English"
    ],
    [
      "-th",
      "-th#English:_abstract_nominal"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Irish",
      "lang_code": "ga",
      "word": "brat",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
      "lang_code": "gd",
      "word": "brot",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Water in which food (meat, vegetable, etc.) has been boiled.",
        "A soup made from broth and other ingredients such as vegetables, herbs or diced meat."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "uncountable",
        "countable"
      ],
      "recordId": "1b04606c1a564d2ce9894f35ad6a1a0e1aa5b7a9b71d1dfc80ca03ee06724a91",
      "rawRecordSha256": "4ac9d3e26ca9a3db4d8baf47867baee8c7ac08a77724e352e60efbd8a7edbdfe",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 182237
    }
  ],
  "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 broth →

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-YnJvdGg