Etymology of few

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 ↗

pron

Few people, few things.

det

An indefinite, but usually small, number of. · Not many; a small (in comparison with another number stated or implied) but somewhat indefinite number of. · Obscuring one to two oktas (eighths) of the sky. · (US?) Having a 10 percent chance of measurable precipitation (0.01 inch); used interchangeably with isolated.

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

From Middle English fewe, from Old English fēaw (“few”), from Proto-West Germanic *fau, from Proto-Germanic *fawaz (“few”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- (“few, small”). Cognate with Old Saxon fā (“few”), Old High German fao, fō (“few, little”), Old Norse fár (“few”), Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃 (faus, “few”). Also related with Latin paucus (“little, few”) and pauper (“poor”), from which latter English poor and pauper; see these.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Root classification mention*peh₂w-ine-pro
Inherited-form mentionfeweenm
Inherited-form mentionfēawang · few
Inherited-form mention*faugmw-pro
Inherited-form mention*fawazgem-pro · few
Derivation mention*peh₂w-ine-pro
Cognate mentionfāosx
Cognate mentionfaogoh
Cognate mentionfárnon · few
Cognate mention𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃got · few
Cognate mentionpaucusla · little, few

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": "*peh₂w-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "fewe"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English fewe"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "fēaw",
        "t": "few"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English fēaw (“few”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*fau"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *fau"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*fawaz",
        "t": "few"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *fawaz (“few”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*peh₂w-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "few, small"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- (“few, small”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "osx",
        "2": "fā",
        "3": "",
        "4": "few"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Saxon fā (“few”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "goh",
        "2": "fao"
      },
      "expansion": "Old High German fao"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "non",
        "2": "fár",
        "t": "few"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse fár (“few”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "got",
        "2": "𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃",
        "t": "few"
      },
      "expansion": "Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃 (faus, “few”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "paucus",
        "t": "little, few"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin paucus (“little, few”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "m+",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "poor"
      },
      "expansion": "English poor"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "fewe",
      "fewe#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "fēaw",
      "feaw#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*fau",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/fau"
    ],
    [
      "*fawaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/fawaz"
    ],
    [
      "*peh₂w-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/peh₂w-"
    ],
    [
      "fā",
      "fa#Old_Saxon"
    ],
    [
      "fao",
      "fao#Old_High_German"
    ],
    [
      "fō",
      "fo#Old_High_German"
    ],
    [
      "fár",
      "fár#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃",
      "𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃#Gothic"
    ],
    [
      "paucus",
      "paucus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "pauper",
      "pauper#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "poor",
      "poor#English"
    ],
    [
      "pauper",
      "pauper#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "pron",
      "glosses": [
        "Few people, few things."
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 5208
    },
    {
      "pos": "det",
      "glosses": [
        "An indefinite, but usually small, number of.",
        "Not many; a small (in comparison with another number stated or implied) but somewhat indefinite number of.",
        "Obscuring one to two oktas (eighths) of the sky.",
        "(US?) Having a 10 percent chance of measurable precipitation (0.01 inch); used interchangeably with isolated."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
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    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

The source etymologies

Unnumbered source etymology

Relationships mentioned by the source

Where this record stops

Source and snapshot