English word origin

Etymology of whid

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 move nimbly and with little noise, usually of small game.

noun

A quick motion; a rapid, quiet movement, usually by small game.

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

From Middle English *whid, from Old English hwiþa, hweoþu (“air, breeze”) or from Old Norse hviða (“gust of wind”), both from Proto-Germanic *hwiþō (“rush of wind”), from Proto-Germanic *hwi- (“to rush”), from Proto-Indo-European *kwei- (“to hiss, whistle, whisper”). Cognate with Scots quhid (“a squall, blast of wind”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mention*whidenm
Inherited-form mentionhwiþaang
Derivation mentionhviðanon
Inherited-form mention*hwiþōgem-pro
Derivation mention*hwi-gem-pro
Derivation mention*kwei-ine-pro
Cognate mentionquhidsco

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": "*whid"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English *whid"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "hwiþa"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English hwiþa"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "hviða",
        "4": "",
        "5": "gust of wind"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse hviða (“gust of wind”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*hwiþō",
        "4": "",
        "5": "rush of wind"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *hwiþō (“rush of wind”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*hwi-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to rush"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *hwi- (“to rush”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*kwei-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to hiss, whistle, whisper"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *kwei- (“to hiss, whistle, whisper”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "quhid",
        "3": "",
        "4": "a squall, blast of wind"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots quhid (“a squall, blast of wind”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*whid",
      "Reconstruction:Middle English/whid"
    ],
    [
      "hwiþa",
      "hwiþa#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "hweoþu",
      "hweoþu#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "hviða",
      "hviða#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "*hwiþō",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/hwiþō"
    ],
    [
      "*hwi-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/hwi-"
    ],
    [
      "*kwei-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/kwei-"
    ],
    [
      "quhid",
      "quhid#Scots"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To move nimbly and with little noise, usually of small game."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "aba12675e9a1c85559cef23a012026432f04da5b8b6883ae23e4e4ed6d5f1f07",
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    },
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A quick motion; a rapid, quiet movement, usually by small game."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1490188
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
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    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To tell a lie.

noun

A lie; a falsehood. · A word. · A quarrel.

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

Perhaps from Old English cwide (“word, speech”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentioncwideang

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "cwide",
        "4": "",
        "5": "word, speech"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English cwide (“word, speech”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "cwide",
      "cwide#Old_English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To tell a lie."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Scotland",
        "intransitive",
        "obsolete"
      ],
      "recordId": "94a71ffb65c5ac72291ee6ddcd0f031f1e25c4499fbfc9645a8860f0c298b3d2",
      "rawRecordSha256": "cf2e6fe1a3a62df0db62bcdcf1f952b0832a9ab697ea916672e003ee3c3551a3",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1490191
    },
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A lie; a falsehood.",
        "A word.",
        "A quarrel."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Scotland",
        "obsolete",
        "UK",
        "dialectal"
      ],
      "recordId": "d2c8fc77239d62ee675c465f48331ab7e9fa96d46f09b958dbcd697901afbdd4",
      "rawRecordSha256": "66cde935f3aac57144740eee945b447a3607c2be1666e3a5a891d041892ef643",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1490190
    }
  ],
  "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 whid →

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-d2hpZA