*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of leam

From Middle English lemen, from Old English līeman, from Proto-West Germanic *liuhmijan, from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“light, bright”).

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 gleam; shine; glow.

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

From Middle English lemen, from Old English līeman, from Proto-West Germanic *liuhmijan, from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“light, bright”).

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": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "lemen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English lemen"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "līeman"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English līeman"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*liuhmijan"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *liuhmijan"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*lewk-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "light, bright"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“light, bright”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "lemen",
      "lemen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "līeman",
      "lieman#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*liuhmijan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/liuhmijan"
    ],
    [
      "*lewk-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/lewk-"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To gleam; shine; glow."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK",
        "dialectal",
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "ad16984965ea42543b78112e667f66e2b9f207310ec053bae23bd8816655b829",
      "rawRecordSha256": "56b306948614475675b69aa77d9cd1683d5930a7e5d6571b3f7b063926a94944",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1879485
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A gleam or flash of light; a glow or glowing.

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

From Middle English leme, from Old English lēoma (“ray of light, beam, radiance, gleam, glare, lightning”), from Proto-Germanic *leuhmô (“light, shine”), from Proto-Indo-European *leuk- (“light, bright”). Cognate with Icelandic ljómi (“gleam, ray, beam, flash of light”), Latin lumen (“light”).

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": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "leme"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English leme"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "lēoma",
        "4": "",
        "5": "ray of light, beam, radiance, gleam, glare, lightning"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English lēoma (“ray of light, beam, radiance, gleam, glare, lightning”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*leuhmô",
        "4": "",
        "5": "light, shine"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *leuhmô (“light, shine”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*leuk-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "light, bright"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *leuk- (“light, bright”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "ljómi",
        "3": "",
        "4": "gleam, ray, beam, flash of light"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic ljómi (“gleam, ray, beam, flash of light”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "lumen",
        "3": "",
        "4": "light"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin lumen (“light”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "leme",
      "leme#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "lēoma",
      "leoma#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*leuhmô",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/leuhmô"
    ],
    [
      "*leuk-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/leuk-"
    ],
    [
      "ljómi",
      "ljómi#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "lumen",
      "lumen#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A gleam or flash of light; a glow or glowing."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK",
        "dialectal"
      ],
      "recordId": "487b784d9102794c478da824ba2837e901494b1795b3d2306975e40bc601b5bc",
      "rawRecordSha256": "4f466942698a2b343936ac0fdb63366b1b4838dd35288e2f22a7faba9dfa9c70",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1879486
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
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    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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  }
}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

A cord or strap for leading a dog.

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

See leamer, lien.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "leamer",
      "leamer#English"
    ],
    [
      "lien",
      "lien#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A cord or strap for leading a dog."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "e131192b81a89d5edd763daae9931bdb19ca665dd6337a7cc0cdf98e0b5dac25",
      "rawRecordSha256": "5b534904f84a724d93df45a7458b031d6c799bba8c11cfaa6ef67d068f22dc93",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1879487
    }
  ],
  "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 leam →

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-bGVhbQ