walk
To move at a regular pace by lifting and setting down each foot in turn.
Etymology
From Old English wealcan (to roll, toss, move about), from Proto-Germanic *walkaną (to roll, to full cloth). The original sense was 'to roll' or 'to turn about,' not 'to go on foot' — that meaning developed in Middle English. The PIE origin is likely *welh₁- (to turn, to roll), though the connection is not universally accepted. The sense evolution from 'rolling' to 'walking' may reflect the rolling gait of a person in motion.
The Journey: *welh₁- → walk
*welh₁- (uncertain)
*walkaną
wealcan
walken
walk
Cognates Across Languages
These words in other languages descend from the same PIE root *welh₁-. They are not borrowings but independent inheritances from a common ancestor.
| Language | Word |
|---|---|
| Dutch | walken — to full, felt |
| German | walken — to full cloth |
| Old Norse | válka — to drag about |
Did You Know?
Walk originally meant 'to roll cloth' — a fulling process in textile production. The modern meaning of moving on foot only became dominant around the 13th century, making it one of English's most dramatic semantic shifts.