*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of glib

A shortening of either obsolete English glibbery (“slippery”) or its source, Low German glibberig, glibberich (“slippery”) / Dutch glibberig (“slippery”).

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

To make smooth or slippery.

noun

A person's mouth or tongue.

adj

Having a ready flow of words but lacking thought or understanding; superficial; shallow. · Smooth or slippery. · Artfully persuasive but insincere in nature; smooth-talking, honey-tongued, silver-tongued. · Snarky or unserious in a disrespectful way.

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

A shortening of either obsolete English glibbery (“slippery”) or its source, Low German glibberig, glibberich (“slippery”) / Dutch glibberig (“slippery”).

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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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "glibbery",
        "3": "",
        "4": "slippery"
      },
      "expansion": "English glibbery (“slippery”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nds",
        "3": "glibberig",
        "4": "glibberig, glibberich",
        "5": "slippery"
      },
      "expansion": "Low German glibberig, glibberich (“slippery”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nl",
        "3": "glibberig",
        "4": "",
        "5": "slippery"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch glibberig (“slippery”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "glibbery",
      "glibbery#English"
    ],
    [
      "glibberig, glibberich",
      "glibberig#Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "glibberig",
      "glibberig#Dutch"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To make smooth or slippery."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 301290
    },
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A person's mouth or tongue."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK",
        "obsolete",
        "slang"
      ],
      "recordId": "b455eb7b2f5a961443ff6d6a5696f77c56e0d9aa95ca002faeebbaed3e7f098a",
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    },
    {
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      "glosses": [
        "Having a ready flow of words but lacking thought or understanding; superficial; shallow.",
        "Smooth or slippery.",
        "Artfully persuasive but insincere in nature; smooth-talking, honey-tongued, silver-tongued.",
        "Snarky or unserious in a disrespectful way."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A mass of matted hair worn down over the eyes, formerly common in Ireland.

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

Borrowed from Irish glib.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "etymid",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "matted hair"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "ga:glib",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Irish\", \"term\" : \"glib\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"ga\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"glib\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"glib\">\nBorrowed from Irish glib."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "ga:glib",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Irish glib."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "glib",
      "glib#Irish"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A mass of matted hair worn down over the eyes, formerly common in Ireland."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
      ],
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
verb

To castrate; to geld; to emasculate.

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

Compare Old English and dialectal English lib (“to castrate, geld”), dialectal Danish live, Low German and Old Dutch lubben.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Cognate mentionliben
  • Cognate mentionliveda
  • Cognate mentionlubbenodt
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "lib",
        "3": "",
        "4": "to castrate, geld"
      },
      "expansion": "English lib (“to castrate, geld”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "live"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish live"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "odt",
        "2": "lubben"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Dutch lubben"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
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      "lib#English"
    ],
    [
      "live",
      "live#Danish"
    ],
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    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
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  "lexical": [
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        "To castrate; to geld; to emasculate."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete"
      ],
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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 glib →

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-Z2xpYg