English word origin

Etymology of ent

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 ↗

noun

A large, fictional, humanoid, walking tree in works by J. R. R. Tolkien.

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

Learned borrowing from Old English ent (“giant”), from Proto-West Germanic *anti; introduced by J. R. R. Tolkien in The Lord of the Rings, 1954–55, as Ent. Compare Middle English *ent, eont (“giant”), inherited from the Old English word, but which apparently did not survive through the Middle English period into Modern times. Apparently survived in some German dialects as Enz (“giant”), also in composite forms. Compare ettin.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Learned-borrowing mentionentang · giant
Derivation mention*antigmw-pro
Cognate mention*entenm

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "lbor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "ent",
        "t": "giant"
      },
      "expansion": "Learned borrowing from Old English ent (“giant”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*anti"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *anti"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "enm",
        "2": "*ent"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English *ent"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "ent",
      "ent#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*anti",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/anti"
    ],
    [
      "Ent",
      "Ent#English"
    ],
    [
      "*ent",
      "Reconstruction:Middle English/ent"
    ],
    [
      "eont",
      "eont#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "Enz",
      "Enz#German"
    ],
    [
      "ettin",
      "ettin#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A large, fictional, humanoid, walking tree in works by J. R. R. Tolkien."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "818734a866f6e55ee0fd98c3f9cd49b012a3730e2f774045ddc963e6e06deaee",
      "rawRecordSha256": "c5deaae6abaa75d67e58c2cb5e9eb7442b4485d8c532fef26ef0bfcb4dbbc094",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 584165
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To pour, especially of rain.

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

Possibly from empty, through assimilation of /m/ to the following /t/.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "glossary",
      "args": {
        "1": "assimilation"
      },
      "expansion": "assimilation"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "empty",
      "empty#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To pour, especially of rain."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Cornwall"
      ],
      "recordId": "90c90d18db21da8364ccf7803c454b9a845b3c5d55da277ddefa56c04306d823",
      "rawRecordSha256": "73f0df247bd359e24a890592ce02e70ba3d22316af9e302b2ec9323dd3562398",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 584166
    }
  ],
  "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 ent →

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-ZW50