*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of widen

PIE word *dwóh₁ From wide + -en (verbal suffix).

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 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.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
verb

To become wide or wider. · To make wide or wider. · To let out clothes to a larger size. · To broaden or extend in scope or range.

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

PIE word *dwóh₁ From wide + -en (verbal suffix).

This page abbreviates 1 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": "dercat",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "langname",
      "args": {
        "1": "ine-pro"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European"
    },
    {
      "name": "word",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine",
        "3": "dwóh₁",
        "id": ""
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "PIE word",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "dwóh₁"
      },
      "expansion": "PIE word\n *dwóh₁"
    },
    {
      "name": "suffix",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "wide",
        "3": "en",
        "pos2": "verbal suffix",
        "id2": "inchoative"
      },
      "expansion": "wide + -en (verbal suffix)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*dwóh₁",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/dwóh₁"
    ],
    [
      "wide",
      "wide#English"
    ],
    [
      "-en",
      "-en#English:_inchoative"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To become wide or wider.",
        "To make wide or wider.",
        "To let out clothes to a larger size.",
        "To broaden or extend in scope or range."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive",
        "transitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "85dfb2386f5328e38c01e299ff98d0ec7760a2dd143d4fa12b749ae7eb2a1507",
      "rawRecordSha256": "d80f69abe63420b66c819ef9377b6ed430ad4d81825cde06f41402852ba822df",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 290769
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 1,
    "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 widen →

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-d2lkZW4