*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of nief

From Old French [Term?], from Latin nativus (“natural”). Doublet of naif and native.

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 serf or bondsman born into servitude.

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

From Old French [Term?], from Latin nativus (“natural”). Doublet of naif and native.

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.

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    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": ""
      },
      "expansion": "Old French [Term?]"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "nativus",
        "4": "",
        "5": "natural"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin nativus (“natural”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "naif",
        "3": "native"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of naif and native"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "nativus",
      "nativus#Latin"
    ],
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      "naif#English"
    ],
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      "native",
      "native#English"
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A clenched hand; fist. · A handful or fistful. · The handgrip of a sword or oar.

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

From Middle English neve (“the clenched hand, fist”), from Old Norse nefi, hnefi (also knefi) ("hand, fist, handful"), from Proto-Germanic *hnefô, from Proto-Indo-European *knep- (“to scrape, scratch, grind”), from Proto-Indo-European *ken- (“to scratch, scrape”). Cognate with Scots neif (“fist”), Norwegian neve, Danish næve, Swedish näve, Middle High German nevemez (“handful”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionneveenm · the clenched hand, fist
  • Derivation mentionnefinon
  • Derivation mention*hnefôgem-pro
  • Derivation mention*knep-ine-pro · to scrape, scratch, grind
  • Derivation mention*ken-ine-pro · to scratch, scrape
  • Cognate mentionneifsco · fist
  • Cognate mentionneveno
  • Cognate mentionnæveda
  • Cognate mentionnävesv
  • Cognate mentionnevemezgmh · handful
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "neve",
        "t": "the clenched hand, fist"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English neve (“the clenched hand, fist”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "nefi"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse nefi"
    },
    {
      "name": "gloss",
      "args": {
        "1": "\"hand, fist, handful\""
      },
      "expansion": "(\"hand, fist, handful\")"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
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        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*hnefô"
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    },
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    },
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      },
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    },
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      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "neif",
        "t": "fist"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots neif (“fist”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "no",
        "2": "neve"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian neve"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "næve"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish næve"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sv",
        "2": "näve"
      },
      "expansion": "Swedish näve"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "gmh",
        "2": "nevemez",
        "t": "handful"
      },
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    }
  ],
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    ],
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      "hnefi#Old_Norse"
    ],
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    ],
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    ],
    [
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      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/knep-"
    ],
    [
      "*ken-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ken-"
    ],
    [
      "neif",
      "neif#Scots"
    ],
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      "neve",
      "neve#Norwegian"
    ],
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      "næve",
      "næve#Danish"
    ],
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      "näve",
      "näve#Swedish"
    ],
    [
      "nevemez",
      "nevemez#Middle_High_German"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A clenched hand; fist.",
        "A handful or fistful.",
        "The handgrip of a sword or oar."
      ],
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        "Ireland",
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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 nief →

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-bmllZg