3 ms·

Huh. “Reet” sounds like it should share a root with “rut” in English.

• jeroenhd 5y ago
  It doesn't appear so, at least according to Wiktionary. The word supposedly comes from some kind of past tense of "rijten" meaning "to rip, tear". "Reet" comes from "rete" which means "split". This is the furthest back the Wiktionary entry goes: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/hr%C4%ABtan%C4%85 https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic... As for English "rut", that word comes from Middle French "route", ultimately leading back to a Romanic origin which funnily enough also has a meaning related to "to break, tear" (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/Hrun%C3%A9pti https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-Eur...). So, although the two are not directly related, their origins are surprisingly close to each other.
  • pdpi 5y ago
    Thanks! A great example of why "should share a root" doesn't mean "does share a root" :)