feedback (English)
Where does "feedback" come from?
The English noun 'feedback' is a transparent compound formed from 'feed' and 'back'[1]. The first element traces back through Middle English 'feden' and Old English 'fēdan'[2], ultimately descending from the Proto-Indo-European root '*peh₂-' meaning 'to guard, graze, feed'[2]. The second element descends from Middle English 'bak' and Old English 'bæc'[3], tracing back to Proto-Germanic '*baką'[3].
Open questions
- The Proto-Germanic form '*baką' is of uncertain origin, with a possible connection to the Proto-Indo-European root '*bʰeg-' meaning 'to vault; arch'. [3] [9]
- The Proto-Germanic verb '*fōdijaną' is variously derived either from '*fōdô' with a suffix or as a causative verb from a lost strong verb. [8]
Full etymology tree
- feedback (English), 'Critical assessment of a process or activity or of their results.'
- compound feed (English), 'To give (someone or something) food to eat.'
- inherited feden (Middle English), 'to provide for; to maintain (oneself or others)'
- inherited fedan (Old English), 'to feed'
- inherited *fōdijan (Proto-West Germanic), 'to feed'
- inherited *fōdijaną (Proto-Germanic), 'to feed'
- inherited *peh₂- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to protect, to ward'
- inherited *fōdijaną (Proto-Germanic), 'to feed'
- inherited *fōdijan (Proto-West Germanic), 'to feed'
- inherited fedan (Old English), 'to feed'
- inherited feden (Middle English), 'to provide for; to maintain (oneself or others)'
- compound back (English), 'At or near the rear.'
- inherited bak (Middle English), 'The back, hind, or rear of a being's body'
- inherited bæc (Old English), 'back'
- inherited *bak (Proto-West Germanic), 'back (of the body)'
- inherited *baką (Proto-Germanic), 'back, rear'
- derived *bʰóg-o-m (Proto-Indo-European)
- derived *bʰeg- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to break'
- derived *bʰóg-o-m (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited *baką (Proto-Germanic), 'back, rear'
- inherited *bak (Proto-West Germanic), 'back (of the body)'
- inherited bæc (Old English), 'back'
- inherited bak (Middle English), 'The back, hind, or rear of a being's body'
- compound feed (English), 'To give (someone or something) food to eat.'
Ancestors
- feed (English)
- back (English)
Descendants and derived words
- 360 degree feedback (English)
- antifeedback (English)
- autofeedback (English)
- biofeedback (English)
- degenerative feedback (English)
- enterprise feedback management (English)
- feedbacker (English)
- feedback loop (English)
- feedback transfer function (English)
- feedbacky (English)
- ice-albedo feedback (English)
- neurofeedback (English)
Sources
- feedback (English) - Wiktionary
- feed (English) - Wiktionary
- back (English) - Wiktionary
- bak (Middle English) - Wiktionary
- bæc (Old English) - Wiktionary
- fedan (Old English) - Wiktionary
- feden (Middle English) - Wiktionary
- fōdijaną (Proto-Germanic) - Wiktionary
- baką (Proto-Germanic) - Wiktionary
- bak (Proto-West Germanic) - Wiktionary
- fōdijan (Proto-West Germanic) - Wiktionary
- fōdô (Proto-Germanic) - Wiktionary
Updated August 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris