*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of wis

Inherited from Middle English wis (“certain, sure”), from an aphetic form of Middle English iwis, ywis (“certain, sure”) (from Old English ġewiss (“certain, sure”)), or of North Germanic origin, cognate with Icelandic vi

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 ↗
adj

Certain. · Sure.

adv

Certainly, surely. · Really, truly. · Indeed.

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

Inherited from Middle English wis (“certain, sure”), from an aphetic form of Middle English iwis, ywis (“certain, sure”) (from Old English ġewiss (“certain, sure”)), or of North Germanic origin, cognate with Icelandic viss (“certain, sure”), Dutch gewis (“certain, sure”), and German gewiss (“certain, sure”). Ultimately from Proto-Germanic *gawissaz. More at iwis.

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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        "3": "I"
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    },
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    },
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        "4": "",
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      },
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    },
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    },
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      "iwis#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
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      "gewiss#Old_English"
    ],
    [
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      "viss#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "gewis",
      "gewis#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "gewiss",
      "gewiss#German"
    ],
    [
      "*gawissaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/gawissaz"
    ],
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      "iwis",
      "iwis"
    ]
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        "Certain.",
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To know. · To think, suppose. · To imagine, ween; to deem.

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

From an incorrect division, mistaking iwis (“certain”) for I wis (“I know”). See ywis for more information. The German verb wissen may appear similar, but in fact corresponds etymologically to the English verb wit; both of those verbs ultimately descend from the same Proto-Indo-European root as this one.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
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    ],
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    ],
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      "wit"
    ]
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

Clipping of wisdom.

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

Clipping of wisdom.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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  "lexical": [
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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 wis →

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-d2lz