four (English)

Where does "four" come from?

The English word 'four' traces its roots back to the ancient Proto-Indo-European term *kʷetwóres. It evolved through Proto-Germanic and Old English as 'fēower' before arriving at its modern form, sharing a common ancestor with diverse languages like Latin, Sanskrit, and Greek. Interestingly, its Proto-Germanic ancestor *fedwōr underwent a unique sound change, shifting from its expected form due to the influence of the word for 'five'.

Full etymology tree

four (English), 'A numerical value equal to 4; the number after three and before five; two plus two. This many dots (••••)'
- inherited four (Middle English), 'four'
  - inherited fēower (Old English), 'four'
    - inherited *feuwar (Proto-West Germanic), 'four'
      - inherited *fedwōr (Proto-Germanic), 'four'
        inherited *petwṓr (Proto-Germanic)
        inherited *kʷetwṓr (Proto-Indo-European)
        inherited *kʷetwóres (Proto-Indo-European), 'four'
        influence *pénkʷe (Proto-Indo-European), 'five'

Direct ancestors

Updated July 2026

Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris