Etymo

bridegroom

A man who is about to marry or has just married.

Played on · Day 26 · word 2 of 5

An r joins the wedding

How bridegroom reached English

oldest first

  1. Old English

    brȳdguma

    ‘Bridegroom’

    became Middle English

  2. Middle English

    bridegome

    ‘Bridegroom’

    within Middle English

  3. Middle English

    brydegrome

    ‘Bridegroom’

    became English

  4. English

    bridegroom

    ‘A man at the time of marriage’

The story of bridegroom

The r arrived later, reshaping an older word for man.

Old English brȳdguma became Middle English bridegome. Merriam-Webster traces the Scots form brydegrome to folk etymology: an r entered the second part. Bridegroom preserves that reshaped ending.

These are selected forms in a derivation, not exclusive spelling periods.

Source

Merriam-Webster: bridegroom

Word History gives the sequence, the Scots form, folk-etymological reshaping and guma meaning man.

Related

The old second component guma meant man. It is less recognizable today than the later ending groom.

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