eke

eke
\ \ [12] No Old English evidence of this verb, which originally meant ‘increase’, has been found, but related forms in other Germanic languages, such as Old Norse auka and Gothic aukan, suggest that it did exist. Both these and a range of non-Germanic verbs, such as Latin augēre (source of English auction, augment, and author) and Greek aúkhein, point to an ultimate Indo-European ancestor *aug- (from which comes English wax ‘grow’). The first syllable of nickname was originally eke.
\ \ Until comparatively recently English had another word eke [OE], which meant ‘also’ (German auch and Dutch ook ‘also’ are related to it). It is not clear whether it is ultimately the same word as the verb eke.
\ \ Cf.⇒ AUCTION, AUGMENT, AUTHOR, NICKNAME, WAX

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • EKE — or Eke may refer to:* Eke (dance), a Tongan group dance * Encrypted key exchange, a family of password authenticated key agreement methods * Eke, a town part of the muncipality Nazareth in Belgium * Eke, an Igbo deityPeople named Eke:* Eke Uzoma… …   Wikipedia

  • eke — [i:k] v eke out [eke sth<=>out] phr v [: Old English; Origin: iecan, ecan to increase ] 1.) eke out a living/existence to manage to live with very little money or food ▪ They eke out a miserable existence in cardboard shacks. 2.) to make a… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Eke — Eke, adv. [AS. e[ a]c; akin to OFries. [ a]k, OS. ?k, D. ?ok, OHG. ouh, G. auch, Icel. auk, Sw. och and, Dan. og, Goth. auk for, but. Prob. from the preceding verb.] In addition; also; likewise. [Obs. or Archaic] [1913 Webster] T will be… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Eke — ([=e]k), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Eked}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Eking}.] [AS. [=e]kan, [=y]kan; akin to OFries, [=a]ka, OS. ?kian, OHG. ouhh[=o]n to add, Icel. auka to increase, Sw. [ o]ka, Dan. [ o]ge, Goth. aukan, L. augere, Skr. ?jas strength, ugra… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • eke — [ ik ] verb ,eke out phrasal verb transitive to get just enough money or food to be able to continue to exist: eke out a living/an existence: The family barely manages to eke out a living from their small farm. a. to make something such as money… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • eke — eke1 [ēk] vt. eked, eking [ME eken, to increase < OE eacan & eacian: see WAX2] Now Dial. to make larger or longer; increase to make larger or longer; increase eke out 1. to add to so as to make sufficient; supplement [to eke out an income with …   English World dictionary

  • Eke — Eke, n. An addition. [R.] [1913 Webster] Clumsy ekes that may well be spared. Geddes. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • eke — eke·name; eke; …   English syllables

  • eke — ► VERB (eke out) 1) use or consume frugally. 2) make (a living) with difficulty. ORIGIN Old English, «increase» …   English terms dictionary

  • Eke — Die Eke – auch als Bremer Eke bezeichnet – war vor allem im 14. und 15. Jahrhundert die Bezeichnung für ein häufig eingesetztes Binnenschiff aus Eiche (Plattdeutsch Eke), das auf der Weser vor allem auf der Ober und Mittelweser… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • eke — {{11}}eke (adv.) also (obsolete), from O.E. eac, cognate with O.S., O.Du. ok, O.N., Goth. auk, O.Fris. ak, O.H.G. ouh, Ger. auch also; probably related to EKE (Cf. eke) (v.). {{12}}eke (v.) c.1200, eken to increase, lengthen, north England and E …   Etymology dictionary

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