*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of grow

From Middle English growen, from Old English grōwan (“to grow, increase, flourish, germinate”), from Proto-West Germanic *grōan, from Proto-Germanic *grōaną (“to grow, grow green”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰreh₁- (“to

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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

An illicit cannabis farm.

verb

To become larger, to increase in magnitude. · To undergo growth; to be present (somewhere). · To appear or sprout. · To develop, to mature.

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

From Middle English growen, from Old English grōwan (“to grow, increase, flourish, germinate”), from Proto-West Germanic *grōan, from Proto-Germanic *grōaną (“to grow, grow green”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰreh₁- (“to grow, become green”). Cognates Cognate with Dutch groeien (“to grow”), German Low German grojen (“to green; thrive; take hold; flourish”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish gro (“to grow”), Faroese grógva (“to grow”), Icelandic gróa (“to grow”); also Latin grāmen (“grass, turf; herb, plant”), herba (“grass, herbage; weeds; plant”), Ukrainian гря́ний (hrjányj, “green”). Related to growth, grass, green.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Root classification mention*gʰreh₁-ine-pro
  • Inherited-form mentiongrowenenm
  • Inherited-form mentiongrōwanang · to grow, increase, flourish, germinate
  • Inherited-form mention*grōangmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*grōanągem-pro · to grow, grow green
  • Derivation mention*gʰreh₁-ine-pro · to grow, become green
  • Cognate mentiongroeiennl · to grow
  • Cognate mentiongrógvafo · to grow
  • Cognate mentiongróais · to grow
  • Cognate mentiongrāmenla · grass, turf; herb, plant
  • Cognate mentionгря́нийuk · green

This page abbreviates 3 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

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": "*gʰreh₁-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "growen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English growen"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "grōwan",
        "t": "to grow, increase, flourish, germinate"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English grōwan (“to grow, increase, flourish, germinate”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*grōan"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *grōan"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*grōaną",
        "t": "to grow, grow green"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *grōaną (“to grow, grow green”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*gʰreh₁-",
        "t": "to grow, become green"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *gʰreh₁- (“to grow, become green”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "col-top",
      "args": {
        "1": "2",
        "2": "cog"
      },
      "expansion": "Cognates"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "groeien",
        "t": "to grow"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch groeien (“to grow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nds-de",
        "2": "grojen",
        "t": "to green; thrive; take hold; flourish"
      },
      "expansion": "German Low German grojen (“to green; thrive; take hold; flourish”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da,nb,nn,sv",
        "2": "gro",
        "t": "to grow"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish gro (“to grow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fo",
        "2": "grógva",
        "t": "to grow"
      },
      "expansion": "Faroese grógva (“to grow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "gróa",
        "t": "to grow"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic gróa (“to grow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "grāmen",
        "t": "grass, turf; herb, plant"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin grāmen (“grass, turf; herb, plant”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "uk",
        "2": "гря́ний",
        "t": "green"
      },
      "expansion": "Ukrainian гря́ний (hrjányj, “green”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "growen",
      "growen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "grōwan",
      "growan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*grōan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/grōan"
    ],
    [
      "*grōaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/grōaną"
    ],
    [
      "*gʰreh₁-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gʰreh₁-"
    ],
    [
      "groeien",
      "groeien#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "grojen",
      "grojen#Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "Danish",
      "gro#Danish"
    ],
    [
      "Norwegian Bokmål",
      "gro#Norwegian_Bokmål"
    ],
    [
      "Norwegian Nynorsk",
      "gro#Norwegian_Nynorsk"
    ],
    [
      "gro",
      "gro#Swedish"
    ],
    [
      "grógva",
      "grógva#Faroese"
    ],
    [
      "gróa",
      "gróa#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "grāmen",
      "gramen#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "herba",
      "herba#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "гря́ний",
      "гряний#Ukrainian"
    ],
    [
      "growth",
      "growth"
    ],
    [
      "grass",
      "grass"
    ],
    [
      "green",
      "green"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "An illicit cannabis farm."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "92c850bf1ddce1a8a9ad40e1e9248dc97b0901fa4e47fd3a3eef687e36ba0234",
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    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To become larger, to increase in magnitude.",
        "To undergo growth; to be present (somewhere).",
        "To appear or sprout.",
        "To develop, to mature."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "ergative",
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "d2823ffc1508996a617554e60c69d7413733fe744781e2bd6bd0b0a6875d992d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "f0f1fe9c4c5b42c3c2d3b391a1e22332be1644ccbff57f65f538dee69c95e6d1",
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  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 3,
    "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 grow →

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-Z3Jvdw