Unnumbered source etymology
Original entry ↗Rigid; hard to bend; inflexible. · Inflexible; rigid. · Formal in behavior; unrelaxed. · Harsh, severe.
Of the wind, with great force; strongly. · Very thoroughly.
An average person, usually male, of no particular distinction, skill, or education. · A person who is deceived, as a mark or pigeon in a swindle. · A cadaver; a dead person. · A flop; a commercial failure.
To fail to pay that which one owes (implicitly or explicitly) to another, especially by departing hastily. · To cheat someone. · To tip ungenerously. · To kill.
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *steyp Proto-Germanic *stīfaz Proto-West Germanic *stīf Old English stīf Middle English stif English stiff From Middle English stiff, stiffe, stif, from Old English stīf, from Proto-West Germanic *stīf, from Proto-Germanic *stīfaz, from Proto-Indo-European *steypós. See also West Frisian stiif, Dutch stijf, Norwegian Bokmål stiv, German steif; also Latin stīpes, stīpō, from which English stevedore. The expected Modern English form would be /staɪf/; /stɪf/ is probably originally from compounds such as stiffly, where the vowel was shortened before a consonant cluster.
Relationships mentioned by the source
These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.
- Root classification mention*steyp-ine-pro
- Inherited-form mentionstiffenm
- Inherited-form mentionstīfang
- Inherited-form mention*stīfgmw-pro
- Inherited-form mention*stīfazgem-pro
- Inherited-form mention*steypósine-pro
- Cognate mentionstiiffy
- Cognate mentionstijfnl
- Cognate mentionstivnb
- Cognate mentionsteifde
- Cognate mentionstīpesla
This page abbreviates 17 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": "root",
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ine-pro",
"3": "*steyp-"
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"expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *steyp\nProto-Germanic *stīfaz\nProto-West Germanic *stīf\nOld English stīf\nMiddle English stif\nEnglish stiff\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*stīfaz\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*stīf\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"stīf\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"stif\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"stiff\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"stiff\">"
},
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"expansion": "Middle English stiff"
},
{
"name": "inh",
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},
"expansion": "Old English stīf"
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{
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"expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *stīf"
},
{
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},
"expansion": "Proto-Germanic *stīfaz"
},
{
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},
{
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"expansion": "West Frisian stiif"
},
{
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},
"expansion": "Dutch stijf"
},
{
"name": "cog",
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},
"expansion": "Norwegian Bokmål stiv"
},
{
"name": "cog",
"args": {
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"2": "steif"
},
"expansion": "German steif"
},
{
"name": "cog",
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},
"expansion": "Latin stīpes"
},
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}
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],
[
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"Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/stīfaz"
],
[
"*stīf",
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[
"stīf",
"stif#Old_English"
],
[
"stif",
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],
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"stiff",
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],
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[
"stīf",
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],
[
"*stīf",
"Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/stīf"
],
[
"*stīfaz",
"Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/stīfaz"
],
[
"*steypós",
"Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/steypós"
],
[
"stiif",
"stiif#West_Frisian"
],
[
"stijf",
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],
[
"stiv",
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],
[
"steif",
"steif#German"
],
[
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],
[
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],
[
"stevedore",
"stevedore#English"
],
[
"stiffly",
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]
],
"references": [],
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"lexical": [
{
"pos": "adj",
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"Rigid; hard to bend; inflexible.",
"Inflexible; rigid.",
"Formal in behavior; unrelaxed.",
"Harsh, severe."
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"Very thoroughly."
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"A person who is deceived, as a mark or pigeon in a swindle.",
"A cadaver; a dead person.",
"A flop; a commercial failure."
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"glosses": [
"To fail to pay that which one owes (implicitly or explicitly) to another, especially by departing hastily.",
"To cheat someone.",
"To tip ungenerously.",
"To kill."
],
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"lexicalSenses": 17,
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}
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