worse
/wɜːrs/
adjective
Origin
Proto-Germanic
*wersizon — worse
Overview
Meaning Now
- Of lower quality or standard; less good.
- More ill or in a more severe or serious condition.
Language path
Proto-Indo-European → Proto-Germanic → Old English → Middle English → English
Earliest form
wiersa
Earliest period
Old English
Journey
The word is the comparative form of the root 'bad' or 'evil'. In early Germanic, the comparative was formed by suffixing *-izan to the base, which triggered vowel changes (i-umlaut) in the root.
Evolution
- Proto-Germanic
*wersizon
“worse”
- Old English
wiersa
“worse”
- Middle English
werse
“worse”
Connections
Word parts
wors-
root
bad
-e
suffix
comparative marker
Related across languages
German
ärger
worse
Old Norse
verri
worse
Related words
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Related to worse
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.