Etymo

daisy

A flower with a central disk and a ring of petals.

Played on · Day 23 · word 1 of 5

A little eye of the day

How daisy reached English

oldest first
  • dæg‘day’
  • ēage‘eye’

combined

  1. Old English

    dægesēage

    ‘Day's eye’

    became Middle English

  2. Middle English

    dayeseye

    ‘Daisy’

    became English

  3. English

    daisy

    ‘The flower’

The story of daisy

Daisy compresses a tiny image: the day’s eye.

The modern name compresses an Old English compound, dægesēage. Its pieces mean day and eye. Middle English dayeseye makes that image easier to spot: the flower opens in daylight as an eye opens after sleep.

Source

Online Etymology Dictionary: day

Also built on day (Old English dæg): holiday, birthday, daylight.

Also built on Old English dæg

  • daisy, this word
  • holiday
  • birthday
  • daylight

Sometimes a familiar word conceals two other familiar words.

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