Seaweed
/ˈsiːˌwiːd/noun
Marine algae, especially the larger forms that grow in coastal waters.
Did you know?Seaweed is a genuinely old Germanic compound, and the second half is the same ancestral word that gave English “weed,” once meaning any plant at all — not just the unwanted kind.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*weyd-
“to see, perceive”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*widuz
“plant, herb, vegetation”
Old English
OE
sǣwēod
“sea plant, seaweed”
Middle English
ME
sewede
“seaweed”
Modern English
English
seaweed
“marine algae, especially larger coastal forms”