*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of smelt

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *(s)meld- Proto-Indo-European *(s)méldeti Proto-Germanic *smeltaną Proto-Germanic *smeltaz Proto-West Germanic *smelt Old English smelt Middle English smelt English smelt From Middle En

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 ↗
noun

Any small anadromous fish of the family Osmeridae, found in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and in lakes in North America and northern part of Europe. · A fool; a simpleton.

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

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *(s)meld- Proto-Indo-European *(s)méldeti Proto-Germanic *smeltaną Proto-Germanic *smeltaz Proto-West Germanic *smelt Old English smelt Middle English smelt English smelt From Middle English smelt, from Old English smelt, from Proto-West Germanic *smelt, from Proto-Germanic *smeltaz.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionsmeltenm
  • Inherited-form mentionsmeltang
  • Inherited-form mention*smeltgmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*smeltazgem-pro
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:smelt",
        "id": "fish",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *(s)meld-\nProto-Indo-European *(s)méldeti\nProto-Germanic *smeltaną\nProto-Germanic *smeltaz\nProto-West Germanic *smelt\nOld English smelt\nMiddle English smelt\nEnglish smelt\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*smeltaną\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*smeltaz\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*smelt\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"smelt\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"smelt\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"smelt\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"fish\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"smelt\" id=\"English:_fish\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "smelt"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English smelt"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "smelt"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English smelt"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*smelt"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *smelt"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*smeltaz"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *smeltaz"
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:smelt",
        "id": "fish",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *(s)meld-\nProto-Indo-European *(s)méldeti\nProto-Germanic *smeltaną\nProto-Germanic *smeltaz\nProto-West Germanic *smelt\nOld English smelt\nMiddle English smelt\nEnglish smelt"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*(s)meld-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/(s)meld-#Proto-Indo-European:_melt"
    ],
    [
      "*(s)méldeti",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/(s)méldeti#Proto-Indo-European:_melt"
    ],
    [
      "*smeltaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/smeltaną"
    ],
    [
      "*smeltaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/smeltaz"
    ],
    [
      "*smelt",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/smelt"
    ],
    [
      "smelt",
      "smelt#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "smelt",
      "smelt#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "smelt",
      "smelt#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "smelt",
      "smelt#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*smelt",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/smelt"
    ],
    [
      "*smeltaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/smeltaz"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Any small anadromous fish of the family Osmeridae, found in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and in lakes in North America and northern part of Europe.",
        "A fool; a simpleton."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete"
      ],
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      "rawRecordSha256": "77d79f7187cc202daefade1c5040053a30e4d7558dd65fe9d71874743d236304",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 34812
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

simple past and past participle of smell

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

From very early Middle English smelte; likely to derive from Old English, but not recorded.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionsmelteenm
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": "smelte"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English smelte"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "smelte",
      "smelte#Middle_English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "simple past and past participle of smell"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "form-of",
        "participle",
        "past"
      ],
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}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
verb

To produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal.

noun

Production of metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal. · Any of the various liquids or semi-molten solids produced and used during the course of such production.

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

From Middle Dutch smelten (“to melt”) or Middle Low German smelten (“to melt”), from Old Dutch *smeltan or Old Saxon smeltan, both from Proto-West Germanic *smeltan, from Proto-Germanic *smeltaną (“to melt”). Related to English melt and Old English meltan (“to melt”). Cognate to Dutch smelten, German schmelzen.

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": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*(s)meld-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "etymid",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "id": "metal"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "dum",
        "3": "smelten",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to melt"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch smelten (“to melt”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gml",
        "3": "smelten",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to melt"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Low German smelten (“to melt”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "odt",
        "3": "*smeltan"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Dutch *smeltan"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "osx",
        "3": "smeltan"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Saxon smeltan"
    },
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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*smeltan"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *smeltan"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*smeltaną",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to melt"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *smeltaną (“to melt”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "melt"
      },
      "expansion": "English melt"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "ang",
        "2": "meltan",
        "3": "",
        "4": "to melt"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English meltan (“to melt”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "smelten"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch smelten"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "schmelzen"
      },
      "expansion": "German schmelzen"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "smelten",
      "smelten#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "smelten",
      "smelten#Middle_Low_German"
    ],
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      "*smeltan",
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    ],
    [
      "smeltan",
      "smeltan#Old_Saxon"
    ],
    [
      "*smeltan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/smeltan"
    ],
    [
      "*smeltaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/smeltaną"
    ],
    [
      "melt",
      "melt#English"
    ],
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      "meltan",
      "meltan#Old_English"
    ],
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      "smelten",
      "smelten#Dutch"
    ],
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      "schmelzen",
      "schmelzen#German"
    ]
  ],
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  "descendants": [],
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        "To produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal."
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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 smelt →

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-c21lbHQ