etymology, word cards, Flowers, Trees, Food, French, Herbs, word origins, seasons, English Language, Historical Linguistics, Seasonal Vocabulary, Autumn, Weather, Winter Great Expectations Education etymology, word cards, Flowers, Trees, Food, French, Herbs, word origins, seasons, English Language, Historical Linguistics, Seasonal Vocabulary, Autumn, Weather, Winter Great Expectations Education

Frost: the old word for ice at rest 

‘Frost’ has hardly changed in a thousand years. From Old English ‘forst’ to modern English, the same word has marked cold mornings and white fields. Its root goes back to Proto-Germanic frustaz and the older Indo-European preus- — a word for freezing, burning, shivering. Across Europe, its relatives still bite the air: German ‘Frost’, Dutch ‘vorst’, Swedish ‘frost’, French ‘gelée’, Irish ‘sioc’.

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