Online Etymology Dictionary

millstream (n.): Old English mylestream; see mill (n.1) + stream (n.).
mill-wheel (n.): Old English mylnn-hweol; see mill (n.1) + wheel (n.).
peppercorn (n.): late Old English, from pepper (n.) + corn (n.1).
tops (n.): "the best," 1935, American English colloquial, from top (n.1).
oxtail (n.): Old English oxan tægl; see ox + tail (n.1).
panfish (n.): 1833, American English, from pan (n.1) + fish (n.).
pot-pie (n.): also potpie, 1823, American English, from pot (n.1) + pie (n.).
redness (n.): Old English readnes; see red (adj.1) + -ness.
sixtieth: Old English sixteogoða "sixtieth;" see sixty + -th (1).
rainwater (n.): Old English renwæter; see rain (n.) + water (n.1).
summerlong (adj.): Old English sumor lang; see summer (n.1) + long (adj.).
unshorn (adj.): Old English unscoren; see un- (1) "not" + shorn (adj.).
unbegun (adj.): Old English unbegunnen; see un- (1) "not" + begun.
easterner (n.): 1839, American English, from eastern + -er (1). Earlier word was easterling.
wallboard (n.): 1912, American English, from wall (n.) + board (n.1).
hued (adj.): "having a color" of a specified kind, late Old English, from hue (n.1).
latesome (adj.): Old English lætsum "backward, slow, sluggish;" see late + -some (1).
old (adj.): Old English ald (Anglian), eald (West Saxon) "aged, antique, primeval; elder, experienced," from Proto-Germanic *althaz "grown up, adult" (source also of Old Frisian ald, Gothic alþeis, Dutch oud, German alt), originally a past participle stem of a verb meaning "grow, nourish" (compare Gothic alan "to grow up," Old Norse ala "to nourish"), from PIE root *al- (3) "to grow, nourish" (source also of Greek aldaino "make grow, strengthen," althein, althainein "to get well;" Latin alere "to feed, nourish, bring up, increase," altus "high," literally "grown tall," almus "nurturing, nourishing," alumnus "fosterling, step-child;" Old Irish alim "I nourish").

The usual PIE root is *sen- (see senior (adj.)). A few Indo-European languages distinguish words for "old" (vs. young) from words for "old" (vs. new), and some have separate words for aged persons as opposed to old things. Latin senex was used of aged living things, mostly persons, while vetus (literally "having many years") was used of inanimate things. Greek geraios was used mostly of humans; Greek palaios was used mostly of things, of persons only in a derogatory sense. Greek also had arkhaios, literally "belonging to the beginning," which parallels French ancien, used mostly with reference to things "of former times."

Old English also had fyrn "ancient," related to Old English feor "far, distant" (see far, and compare Gothic fairneis, Old Norse forn "old, of old, of former times," Old High German firni "old, experienced"). The original Old English vowel is preserved in Scots auld, also in alderman. The original comparative and superlative (elder, eldest) are retained in particular uses.

First record of old-timer is from 1860. Expression old as the hills first recorded 1819. The good old days dates from 1828. Of old "of old times" is from late 14c. Old maid "woman who remains single well beyond the usual marrying age" is from 1520s; the card game is attested by that name from 1844. Old man "man who has lived long" is from c. 1200; sense of "husband, father, boss" is from 1854, earlier (1830) it was military slang for "commanding officer;" old lady "wife, mother" is attested from c. 1775 (but compare Old English seo ealde hlæfdige "the queen dowager"). Old English is attested from 1701, originally as a type of font. Old boy originally was a former pupil of one of the English public schools. Old Testament attested from mid-14c.
potsherd (n.): early 14c., from pot (n.1) + Middle English schoord, from Old English sceard (see shard).
thirtieth: Middle English threttyth, from Old English þritigoða; see thirty + -th (1). Respelled 16c. to conform to new spelling of thirty.
hueless (adj.): Old English hiwlease "colorless;" see hue (n.1) + -less. In Old English and Middle English it also meant "formless, shapeless."
ringleader (n.): c. 1500, from Middle English phrase to lead the ring (mid-14c.), probably from a medieval metaphor from dancing. See ring (n.1) + lead (v.1).
motherly (adj.): Old English modorlic "pertaining to a mother;" see mother (n.1) + -ly (1). Meaning "befitting a mother" is from mid-13c. Related: Motherliness.
mailbox (n.): also mail-box, 1797, "box for mailbags on a coach," from mail (n.1) + box (n.1). Meaning "letterbox" is from 1853, American English.
priestly (adj.): mid-15c.; see priest + -ly (1). Old English had preostlic, but the modern word seems to be a Middle English re-formation.
nightly (adj.): Old English nihtlic "nocturnal, of the night, at night;" see night + -ly (1). As an adverb, Middle English nihtlich, from the adjective.
unrighteous (adj.): 1520s; see un- (1) "not" + righteous (adj.). In Middle English, the word was unrightwis, from Old English unrihtwis. Related: Unrighteously; unrighteousness.
unshod (adj.): "without shoes," Old English unscod; see un- (1) "not" + shod (adj.). Old English also had a verb unscogan "to unshoe."
ballocks (n.): "testicles," from Old English beallucas, plural diminutive of balle (see ball (n.1)).
dastardly (adj.): 1560s, "showing despicable cowardice," originally "dull," from Middle English dastard + -ly (1).
abed (adv.): Old English on bedde "in bed," from a- (1) + bed (n.). As one word from 17c.
calve (v.): Old English cealfian, from cealf "calf" (see calf (n.1)). Of icebergs, 1837. Related: Calved; calving.
uncanny (adj.): 1590s, "mischievous;" 1773 in the sense of "associated with the supernatural," originally Scottish and northern English, from un- (1) "not" + canny.
inconceivable (adj.): 1630s, from in- (1) "not, opposite of" + conceivable. Related: Inconceivably; inconceivability. An Old English word for this was unasmeagendlic.
afloat (adj.): Old English aflote, on flot, from a- "on" (see a- (1)) + flot "body of water" (see float (n.)).
woodcock (n.): Old English wuducoc, from wudu (see wood (n.)) + coc (see cock (n.1)).
fool-proof (adj.): also foolproof, 1902, American English, "safe against the incompetence of a fool," from fool (n.1) + adjectival sense from proof (n.).
anew (adv.): c. 1300, a neue, from Old English of-niowe; see a- (1) + new. One-word form dominant from c. 1400.
cloven (adj.): "divided, split," Old English clofen, past participle adjective from cleave (v.1).
millstone (n.): Old English mylenstan, from mill (n.1) + stone (n.). Figurative sense of "a burden" (1720) is from Matt. xviii:6.
buttocks (n.): late 13c., probably related to Old English buttuc "end, short piece of land" (see butt (n.1)).
con (n.2): "study," early 15c., from Old English cunnan "to know, know how" (see can (v.1)).
unwearied (adj.): mid-13c., from Old English ungewerigod, from un- (1) "not" + past participle of weary (v.).
vineyard (n.): c. 1300, replacing Old English wingeard, from vine + yard (n.1). Compare German weingarten.
unburied (adj.): Old English unbyrged "unburied," from un- (1) "not" + past participle of bury (v.).
unforgiven (adj.): early 15c., from un- (1) "not" + past participle adjective from forgive (v.). Old English had unforgifen.
unhallowed (adj.): "not consecrated," Old English unhalgod, from un- (1) "not" + past participle of hallow (v.).
unbearable (adj.): mid-15c., from un- (1) "not" + bearable. Related: Unbearably. Old English had unberendlic.
unasked (adj.): mid-13c., "uninvited," from un- (1) "not" + past participle of ask (v.). Old English had ungeaxod.
apocryphal (adj.): 1580s, "of doubtful authenticity," from Apocrypha + -al (1). Middle English had apocrive (late 14c.) in same sense.