*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of kill

From Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil (“to kill”). * Perhaps from unattested Old English *cyllan, from Proto-West Germanic *kwulljan, from P

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 ↗
verb

To put to death; to extinguish the life of. · To render inoperative. · To stop, cease, or render void; to terminate. · To amaze, exceed, stun, or otherwise incapacitate.

noun

The act of killing. · Specifically, the death blow. · The result of killing; that which has been killed. · An instance of killing; a score on the tally of enemy personnel or vehicles killed or destroyed.

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

From Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil (“to kill”). * Perhaps from unattested Old English *cyllan, from Proto-West Germanic *kwulljan, from Proto-Germanic *kwuljaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- (“to throw, hit, hurt by throwing”). * Or, possibly a variant of Old English cwellan (“to kill, murder, execute”) (see quell). * Or, from Old Norse kolla (“to hit on the head, harm”), related to Norwegian kylla (“to poll”), Middle Dutch kollen (“to knock down”), Icelandic kollur (“top, head”); see also coll, cole). Compare also Saterland Frisian källe (“to hurt”), Middle Dutch kellen (“to kill, hurt”), Middle Low German kellen, killen (“to ache strongly, cause one great pain”) (whence German Low German kellen, killen (“to hurt, injure, torment, vex”)), Middle High German kellen (“to torment; torture”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionkillenenm
  • Cognate mentionkelesco
  • Inherited-form mention*cyllanang
  • Inherited-form mention*kwulljangmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*kwuljanągem-pro
  • Derivation mention*gʷelH-ine-pro · to throw, hit, hurt by throwing
  • Inherited-form mentioncwellanang · to kill, murder, execute
  • Derivation mentionkollanon · to hit on the head, harm
  • Cognate mentionkyllano · to poll
  • Cognate mentionkollendum · to knock down
  • Cognate mentionkolluris · top, head
  • Cognate mentionkällestq · to hurt
  • Cognate mentionkellendum · to kill, hurt
  • Cognate mentionkellengml
  • Cognate mentionkellengmh · to torment; torture

This page abbreviates 15 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": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "killen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English killen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "kele"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots kele"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "*cyllan"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English *cyllan"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*kwulljan"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *kwulljan"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*kwuljaną"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *kwuljaną"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*gʷelH-",
        "t": "to throw, hit, hurt by throwing"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- (“to throw, hit, hurt by throwing”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "cwellan",
        "t": "to kill, murder, execute"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English cwellan (“to kill, murder, execute”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "kolla",
        "t": "to hit on the head, harm"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse kolla (“to hit on the head, harm”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "no",
        "2": "kylla",
        "t": "to poll"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian kylla (“to poll”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "dum",
        "2": "kollen",
        "t": "to knock down"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch kollen (“to knock down”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "kollur",
        "t": "top, head"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic kollur (“top, head”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "stq",
        "2": "källe",
        "t": "to hurt"
      },
      "expansion": "Saterland Frisian källe (“to hurt”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "dum",
        "2": "kellen",
        "t": "to kill, hurt"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch kellen (“to kill, hurt”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "gml",
        "2": "kellen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Low German kellen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nds-de",
        "2": "kellen"
      },
      "expansion": "German Low German kellen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "gmh",
        "2": "kellen",
        "t": "to torment; torture"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German kellen (“to torment; torture”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "killen",
      "killen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "kyllen",
      "kyllen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cüllen",
      "cullen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "kele",
      "kele#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "*cyllan",
      "Reconstruction:Old English/cyllan"
    ],
    [
      "*kwulljan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/kwulljan"
    ],
    [
      "*kwuljaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kwuljaną"
    ],
    [
      "*gʷelH-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gʷelH-"
    ],
    [
      "cwellan",
      "cwellan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "quell",
      "quell#English"
    ],
    [
      "kolla",
      "kolla#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "kylla",
      "kylla#Norwegian"
    ],
    [
      "kollen",
      "kollen#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "kollur",
      "kollur#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "coll",
      "coll#English"
    ],
    [
      "cole",
      "cole#English"
    ],
    [
      "källe",
      "källe#Saterland_Frisian"
    ],
    [
      "kellen",
      "kellen#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "kellen",
      "kellen#Middle_Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "killen",
      "killen#Middle_Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "kellen",
      "kellen#Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "killen",
      "killen#Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "kellen",
      "kellen#Middle_High_German"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To put to death; to extinguish the life of.",
        "To render inoperative.",
        "To stop, cease, or render void; to terminate.",
        "To amaze, exceed, stun, or otherwise incapacitate."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive",
        "figuratively",
        "excessive"
      ],
      "recordId": "299cd409b1a8a4b068cca8bdf150bd393806ba275d9c75de1feeace972da7eac",
      "rawRecordSha256": "5b8aea09835f3f584a6274653e651918e45cb9afb018785d27367cc77df0dc5b",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 13032
    },
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "The act of killing.",
        "Specifically, the death blow.",
        "The result of killing; that which has been killed.",
        "An instance of killing; a score on the tally of enemy personnel or vehicles killed or destroyed."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable"
      ],
      "recordId": "cae6774a3873c27ed1e91e2a68fafe1c6bbf91607e8e1c10d76d689d5b45e2c0",
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  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 15,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A creek or stream; (more loosely) any watercourse, such as a channel or arm of the sea. · In particular, a waterway with a name ending in kill, such as the Beaverkill or the East Kill.

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

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵeyH-der. Proto-Indo-European *ǵi(H)-l-der. Proto-Germanic *kiljǭ Proto-West Germanic *killjā Old Dutch *killa Middle Dutch kille Dutch kilbor. English kill Borrowing from Dutch kil (formerly spelled kill), from Middle Dutch kille, from Old Dutch *killa, from Proto-West Germanic *killjā, from Proto-Germanic *kiljǭ (“fissure, slit; a type of stream, creek, channel”). Doublet of Kiel. Most place names with kill were derived entirely in Dutch, but many have been subsequently calqued into English or anglicized by folk etymology; for example, Motherkill and Murderkill both likely derive from Dutch *Modderkil (“Mud Creek”) (better preserved in Mudder Kill and Muddy Kill), originally having nothing to do with mothership or murder.

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.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "wp",
      "args": {
        "1": "+ (body of water)"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "nl:kil<id:kill>",
        "id": "creek",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *ǵeyH-der.\nProto-Indo-European *ǵi(H)-l-der.\nProto-Germanic *kiljǭ\nProto-West Germanic *killjā\nOld Dutch *killa\nMiddle Dutch kille\nDutch kilbor.\nEnglish kill\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"kill\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"riverbed\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"alt\" : \"*ǵi(H)-l-\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*ǵeyH-\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*kiljǭ\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*killjā\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old Dutch\", \"term\" : \"*killa\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"odt\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Middle Dutch\", \"term\" : \"kille\", \"lang\" : \"dum\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Dutch\", \"term\" : \"kil\", \"lang\" : \"nl\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"kill\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"creek\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"kill\" id=\"English:_creek\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nl",
        "3": "kil",
        "id": "kill",
        "pos": "formerly spelled <i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"nl\">kill</i>"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch kil (formerly spelled kill)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "dum",
        "3": "kille"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch kille"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "odt",
        "3": "*killa"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Dutch *killa"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*killjā"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *killjā"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*kiljǭ",
        "4": "",
        "5": "fissure, slit; a type of stream, creek, channel"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *kiljǭ (“fissure, slit; a type of stream, creek, channel”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "dbt",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "Kiel"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of Kiel"
    },
    {
      "name": "lg",
      "args": {
        "1": "calqued"
      },
      "expansion": "calqued"
    },
    {
      "name": "lg",
      "args": {
        "1": "folk etymology"
      },
      "expansion": "folk etymology"
    },
    {
      "name": "m+",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "",
        "3": "*Modderkil",
        "4": "Mud Creek"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch *Modderkil (“Mud Creek”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "nl:kil<id:kill>",
        "id": "creek",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *ǵeyH-der.\nProto-Indo-European *ǵi(H)-l-der.\nProto-Germanic *kiljǭ\nProto-West Germanic *killjā\nOld Dutch *killa\nMiddle Dutch kille\nDutch kilbor.\nEnglish kill"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*ǵeyH-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ǵeyH-"
    ],
    [
      "*kiljǭ",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kiljǭ"
    ],
    [
      "*killjā",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/killjā"
    ],
    [
      "*killa",
      "Reconstruction:Old Dutch/killa"
    ],
    [
      "kille",
      "kille#Middle_Dutch:_riverbed"
    ],
    [
      "kil",
      "kil#Dutch:_kill"
    ],
    [
      "kil",
      "kil#Dutch:_kill"
    ],
    [
      "kill",
      "kill#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "kille",
      "kille#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "*killa",
      "Reconstruction:Old Dutch/killa"
    ],
    [
      "*killjā",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/killjā"
    ],
    [
      "*kiljǭ",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kiljǭ"
    ],
    [
      "Kiel",
      "Kiel#English"
    ],
    [
      "anglicize",
      "anglicize"
    ],
    [
      "Motherkill",
      "Motherkill#English"
    ],
    [
      "Murderkill",
      "Murderkill#English"
    ],
    [
      "Mudder Kill",
      "Mudder Kill#English"
    ],
    [
      "Muddy Kill",
      "Muddy Kill#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A creek or stream; (more loosely) any watercourse, such as a channel or arm of the sea.",
        "In particular, a waterway with a name ending in kill, such as the Beaverkill or the East Kill."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "New-York",
        "Northeastern",
        "US",
        "archaic",
        "dialectal"
      ],
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    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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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 kill →

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-a2lsbA