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For further information, including the full final version of the list, read the Wikipedia article: Swadesh list .American linguist Morris Swadesh believed that languages changed at measurable rates and that these could be determined even for languages without written precursors. Using vocabulary lists, he sought to understand not only change over time but also the relationships of extant languages. To be able to compare languages from different cultures, he based his lists on meanings he presumed would be available in as many cultures as possible. He then used the fraction of agreeing cognates between any two related languages to compute their divergence time by some (still debated) algorithms. Starting in 1950 with 165 meanings, his list grew to 215 in 1952, which was so expansive that many languages lacked native vocabulary for some terms. Subsequently, it was reduced to 207, and reduced much further to 100 meanings in 1955. A reformulated list was published posthumously in 1971.
No.
English
Proto-Hellenic
1
I
*egṓ
2
you (singular)
*tú
3
he
*ho
4
we
*əsmey
5
you (plural)
*usmey
6
they
7
this
*yós
8
that
*ho
9
here
*hode
10
there
*ím
11
who
*kʷís
12
what
*kʷíd
13
where
*kʷos
14
when
*kʷokʷe
15
how
*kʷeyes
16
not
*mḗ
17
all
*pānts
18
many
*polús
19
some
*merikós
20
few
*olígos
21
other
*áľľos
22
one
*hens
23
two
*dúwō
24
three
*tréyes
25
four
*kʷétwores
26
five
*pénkʷe
27
big
*mégas
28
long
*dolikʰós *makrós
29
wide
*plətús *eurús
30
thick
*puknos *pəkʰús
31
heavy
*gʷarus
32
small
*mīkrós
33
short
*brəkʰús
34
narrow
*ankʰús
35
thin
*leptós
36
woman
*gunā́
37
man (adult male)
*anḗr
38
man (human being)
*ántʰrōkʷos
39
child
*pā́wits
40
wife
*pótnia
41
husband
*pótis
42
mother
*mā́tēr
43
father
*patḗr
44
animal
*ďṓyyon
45
fish
*itʰkʰús
46
bird
*órnīks
47
dog
*kúōn
48
louse
*kʷʰtʰéřřos
49
snake
*ókʷʰis
50
worm
*skṓlāks
51
tree
*dóru
52
forest
53
stick
*klṓn
54
fruit
*karpós
55
seed
*spóros
56
leaf
*pʰóľľon
57
root
*wrédia
58
bark (of a tree)
59
flower
*ántʰos
60
grass
*póiwā
61
rope
*tónos
62
skin
63
meat
*kréwas
64
blood
*éhər
65
bone
*ósteon
66
fat (noun)
*lípos
67
egg
*ōyyón
68
horn
*kéras
69
tail
70
feather
*ptílon
71
hair
72
head
73
ear
*ṓws
74
eye
*ókʷs
75
nose
76
mouth
*stómə
77
tooth
*odónts
78
tongue (organ)
79
fingernail
80
foot
*pṓts
81
leg
*skélos
82
knee
*gónu
83
hand
*kʰéhr
84
wing
85
belly
86
guts
*énteron
87
neck
88
back
89
breast
90
heart
*kərdíyā
91
liver
*yékʷər
92
to drink
93
to eat
*édō
94
to bite
95
to suck
96
to spit
97
to vomit
98
to blow
99
to breathe
*pnéwō
100
to laugh
101
to see
*wéydō *gʷlépō
102
to hear
*akouhō *awiyō
103
to know
*wóyda *gignṓskō
104
to think
105
to smell
*óďďō
106
to fear
*dédwoya
107
to sleep
*séudō *iauhō
108
to live
*ďṓwō
109
to die
110
to kill
*kʷʰékʷʰnon *kʷʰéňňō
111
to fight
112
to hunt
113
to hit
*túpťō
114
to cut
*támnō
115
to split
*skʰíďďō
116
to stab
117
to scratch
118
to dig
*orúťťō
119
to swim
120
to fly
*pétamai
121
to walk
*gʷəňňō
122
to come
*gʷəskō
123
to lie (as in a bed)
*kéimai
124
to sit
*hízdō *heďďomai
125
to stand
*hístāmi
126
to turn (intransitive)
127
to fall
*píptō
128
to give
*dídōmi
129
to hold
*hékʰō
130
to squeeze
131
to rub
132
to wash
*niďďō *pluňňō
133
to wipe
134
to pull
135
to push
136
to throw
137
to tie
*déyō
138
to sew
139
to count
140
to say
*enhékʷō *pʰā́mi
141
to sing
*awéidō
142
to play
143
to float
*pléwō
144
to flow
*hréyyō
145
to freeze
146
to swell
*áuksō
147
sun
*hāwélios
148
moon
*méns
149
star
*astḗr
150
water
*údōr
151
rain
152
river
153
lake
154
sea
*póntos
155
salt
*hā́ls
156
stone
157
sand
158
dust
159
earth
*kʰtʰṓn
160
cloud
*népʰos
161
fog
*omíkʰlā
162
sky
163
wind
*ánemos
164
snow
*kʰiyōn
165
ice
166
smoke
*kapnós
167
fire
*pū́r *áitʰos
168
ash
169
to burn
170
road
171
mountain
*óros
172
red
*erutʰrós
173
green
*kʰlōrós
174
yellow
175
white
*leukós
176
black
177
night
*nókʷts
178
day
*ā́mər
179
year
*wétos
180
warm
*kʷʰermós
181
cold
182
full
183
new
*néwos *kəňňós
184
old
*palaiós *hénos
185
good
*ewéhus *ehu-
186
bad
187
rotten
188
dirty
189
straight
*ortʰwós
190
round
191
sharp (as a knife)
*akros
192
dull (as a knife)
193
smooth
*léiwos
194
wet
*ugrós
195
dry
*ksērós
196
correct
197
near
198
far
*makrós
199
right
*deksiwós
200
left
*laiwós *skaiwós
201
at
*epí *opí
202
in
*en *ení
203
with
*ksun *meta
204
and
*kʷe *de
205
if
206
because
207
name
*ónomə
Swadesh lists
Individual languages
Language families, family branches, and geographic groupings
Constructed languages
Reconstructed proto-languages
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