English word origin

Etymology of thirl

From Middle English thirl, thiril, from Old English þyrel (“hole”), from Proto-West Germanic *þurhil, from Proto-Germanic *þurhilą (“hole, opening”), from Proto-Indo-European *tr̥h₂kʷelo- which is *tr̥h₂kʷe + *-lo, from

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 4 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

A hole, an aperture, especially a nostril. · A low door in a dry-stone wall to allow sheep to pass through; a smoot. · A short communication between adits in a mine. · A long adit in a coalpit.

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

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentionthirlenm
Inherited-form mentionþyrelang · hole
Inherited-form mention*þurhilgmw-pro
Inherited-form mention*þurhilągem-pro · hole, opening
Inherited-form mention*tr̥h₂kʷelo-ine-pro

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "thirl"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English thirl"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "þyrel",
        "t": "hole"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English þyrel (“hole”)"
    },
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        "3": "*tr̥h₂kʷelo-"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *tr̥h₂kʷelo-"
    },
    {
      "name": "surf",
      "args": {
        "1": "+suf",
        "2": "en",
        "3": "through",
        "4": "le"
      },
      "expansion": "By surface analysis, through + -le"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "thirl",
      "thirl#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "thiril",
      "thiril#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "þyrel",
      "þyrel#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*þurhil",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/þurhil"
    ],
    [
      "*þurhilą",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/þurhilą"
    ],
    [
      "*tr̥h₂kʷelo-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/tr̥h₂kʷelo-"
    ],
    [
      "*tr̥h₂kʷe",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/tr̥h₂kʷe"
    ],
    [
      "*-lo",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-lo"
    ],
    [
      "*terh₂-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/terh₂-"
    ],
    [
      "thrill",
      "thrill#English"
    ],
    [
      "drill",
      "drill#English"
    ],
    [
      "through",
      "through#English"
    ],
    [
      "-le",
      "-le#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
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        "A hole, an aperture, especially a nostril.",
        "A low door in a dry-stone wall to allow sheep to pass through; a smoot.",
        "A short communication between adits in a mine.",
        "A long adit in a coalpit."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dialectal",
        "obsolete"
      ],
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To pierce; to perforate, penetrate, cut through. · To drill or bore; to cut through, as a partition between one working and another.

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

From Middle English thirlen, thurlen, thorlen, from Old English þȳrlian (“to pierce”), from the noun (see above). Doublet of thrill.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentionthirlenenm
Inherited-form mentionþȳrlianang
Doublet mentionthrillen

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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        "2": "ang",
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        "4": "",
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    },
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    ],
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      "thorlen#Middle_English"
    ],
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      "þyrlian#Old_English"
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗

verb

To throw (a projectile).

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

Uncertain. Perhaps a blend of throw + hurl.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Blend componentthrowen
Blend componenthurlen

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗

verb

To legally bind (a tenant) to the use of one's own property as an owner. · To bind; to obligate to use or be associated with.

noun

A thrall.

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

Dialectal alteration of thrall.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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        "To legally bind (a tenant) to the use of one's own property as an owner.",
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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 thirl →

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-dGhpcmw