Twin
/twɪn/noun
One of two children or things born or produced at the same time; a paired counterpart.
Did you know?The word goes back to a Proto-Indo-European root often reconstructed as *dwo- / *d(w)o- for “two,” which also lies behind words like duo, twice, and two — a tiny linguistic echo of duplication itself.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dwo-
“two, double”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*twinaz
“twin; one of a pair”
Old English
OE
twēgen / twīgen
“two; twin-like, paired”
Middle English
ME
twin
“one of two born at the same birth”
Modern English
English
twin
“one of two offspring born together; a paired counterpart”