{"id":4075,"date":"2025-08-22T13:01:35","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T13:01:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?p=4075"},"modified":"2025-08-22T13:01:35","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T13:01:35","slug":"adventures-in-etymology-sticky-climbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?p=4075","title":{"rendered":"Adventures in Etymology &#8211; Sticky Climbs"},"content":{"rendered":"<div itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AudioObject\"><meta itemprop=\"name\" content=\"Adventures in Etymology &amp;#8211; Sticky Climbs\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2025-08-22T13:01:35+00:00\" \/><meta itemprop=\"encodingFormat\" content=\"audio\/mpeg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT2M37S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"In this Adventure in Etymology we uncover the sticky roots of the word climb.\n\n\n\nMeanings of climb [kla\u026am] include:\n\n\n  To ascend, rise or go up\n  To mount, move upwards\n  To scale, get to the top of\n  To move by gripping with the hands and using the...\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2.3\" \/><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_4828\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4075-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?powerpress_pinw=4075-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"stickyclimbs.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p>In this Adventure in Etymology we uncover the sticky roots of the word <strong>climb<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><a data-flickr-embed=\"true\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/hedera_baltica\/44715164995\/in\/photolist-2b8jUGB-23MsHFV-GpXs4K-Dy5bfY-24EDnFN-e7zN1W-24tyoig-ZmqREs-e7h79N-eSwtiY-EZ4rJW-pVhzMu-aXpEiv-8Q8egV-5m3xi4-e7bsbz-8MJQgc-e7h9HG-2ei6Qmm-d16nHm-cRaqnA-2N6Zm5-e7h6Xh-MrCQ96-aFtKRv-6yunW-25mxVwS-29W5g7f-e7bv3n-4xVCY6-a4jtNC-28wmDk6-XPS4At-5AkssH-R7V8t-4xVECv-e7buxM-24wxPb8-dKnzTZ-e7gYgb-a5Cz5s-4xVGv4-mhZjq1-N4u5Cd-8TV6B-e7h9jf-Fydac6-CQ46HE-E3qBJD-CBCzv4\" title=\"Red squirrel\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/1948\/44715164995_5446f8cc72_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"545\" alt=\"Red squirrel\"\/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Meanings of <strong>climb<\/strong> [kla\u026am] include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>To ascend, rise or go up<\/li>\n<li>To mount, move upwards<\/li>\n<li>To scale, get to the top of<\/li>\n<li>To move by gripping with the hands and using the feet<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It comes from Middle English <em>climben<\/em> [\u02c8kli(\u02d0)mb\u0259n \/ \u02c8kli(\u02d0)m\u0259n] (to climb, scale, ascend) &#8211; the b was no longer pronounced in Late Middle English &#8211; from Old English <em>climban<\/em> [\u02c8klim.b\u0251n] (to climb), from Proto-West Germanic <em>*klimban<\/em> (to climb), from Proto-Germanic <em>*klimban\u0105<\/em> (to climb), probably from <em>*klib\u0101n\u0105<\/em> (to stick, adhere) from Proto-Indo-European <em>*gley-<\/em> (to smear, to stick, putty, glue) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/climb#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Words from the same roots possibly include <strong>glue<\/strong>, <strong>gluten<\/strong>, <strong>clay<\/strong>, <strong>to cleave<\/strong>, <strong>cliff<\/strong>, <strong>cloth<\/strong> in English, <strong>klimmen<\/strong> (to climb) and <strong>kleven<\/strong> (to stick, glue) in Dutch, <strong>glynu<\/strong> (to stick, adhere) in Welsh, and <strong>glina<\/strong> (clay, loam) in Polish [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European\/gleyH-\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>The English word <strong>clamber<\/strong> (to climb with difficulty or in a haphazard fashion) possibly also comes from the same roots, and is related to <strong>klambra<\/strong> (to clamp) in Icelandic and <strong>klamra<\/strong> (to cling) in Swedish [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/clamber#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Incidentally, the word <strong>to cleave<\/strong> can mean both to split or sever something with a sharp instrument, and to adhere, cling, or stick fast to something. The second meaning shares common roots with <strong>climb<\/strong>, but the first doesn&#8217;t [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/cleave#Etymology_2\">source<\/a>]<\/p>\n<p>Instead, it comes from Middle English <em>cleven<\/em> (to cleave, split, slice), from Old English <em>cl\u0113ofan<\/em> (to cleave, split), from Proto-West Germanic <em>*kleuban<\/em> (to split, cleave), from Proto-Germanic <em>*kleuban\u0105<\/em> (to split, cleave), from Proto-Indo-European <em>*glewb\u02b0-<\/em> (to cut, to slice) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/cleave#Etymology_1\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Related words include <strong>cleft<\/strong> and <strong>glyph<\/strong> in English, <strong>kloof<\/strong> (gap, gorge, ravine) in Dutch (and in Afrikaans and South African English), and <strong>\u0433\u043b\u0443\u0431\u043e\u043a\u0438\u0439<\/strong> [\u0261\u026b\u028a\u02c8bok\u02b2\u026aj] (deep, profound) in Russian [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European\/glewb%CA%B0-\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/uk\/cgi-bin\/webscr?cmd=_flow&amp;SESSION=aLjPfXL-vP_1gQ_U23Iz8_hSWLlhzLHPMFZrt32dIEfG8htoNFLYaPoWkv8&amp;dispatch=5885d80a13c0db1f8e263663d3faee8def8934b92a630e40b7fef61ab7e9fe63\">PayPal<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/omniglot\">Patreon<\/a>, or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/donations.htm\">contribute to Omniglot in other ways<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with <a href=\"https:\/\/blubrry.com\/services\/podcast-hosting\/?code=omniglot\">Blubrry Podcast Hosting<\/a>, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code <strong>omniglot<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanesepod101.com\/member\/go.php?r=759259&amp;i=b0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/images\/banners\/banner_japanesepod.jpg\" alt=\"The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com\" width=\"630\" height=\"83\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/bloggle\/\">Omniglot Blog<\/a>, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/\">Celtiadur<\/a> blog.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-5001128073855040\"\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- Blog horizontal --><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-5001128073855040\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"1685480124\"\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AudioObject\"><meta itemprop=\"name\" content=\"Adventures in Etymology &amp;#8211; Sticky Climbs\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2025-08-22T13:01:35+00:00\" \/><meta itemprop=\"encodingFormat\" content=\"audio\/mpeg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT2M37S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"In this Adventure in Etymology we uncover the sticky roots of the word climb.\n\n\n\nMeanings of climb [kla\u026am] include:\n\n\n  To ascend, rise or go up\n  To mount, move upwards\n  To scale, get to the top of\n  To move by gripping with the hands and using the...\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2.3\" \/><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_4829\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4075-2\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3?_=2\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?powerpress_pinw=4075-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/stickyclimbs.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"stickyclimbs.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p>In this Adventure in Etymology we uncover the sticky roots of the word climb. Meanings of climb [kla\u026am] include: To ascend, rise or go up To mount, move upwards To scale, get to the top of To move by gripping with the hands and using the feet It comes from Middle English climben [\u02c8kli(\u02d0)mb\u0259n \/ [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[98,47,20,56,29,4,58,11,55,1,63,57,59,119,32,30,7],"tags":[305,304,303,90,9,15,88,8,103],"class_list":["post-4075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventures-in-etymology","category-dutch","category-english","category-etymology","category-icelandic","category-language","category-middle-english","category-music","category-old-english-aenglisc","category-podcast","category-polish-polski","category-proto-germanic","category-proto-indo-european","category-proto-west-germanic","category-russian","category-swedish","category-welsh","tag-clamber","tag-cleave","tag-climb","tag-etymology","tag-language","tag-music","tag-omniglot","tag-podcast","tag-words"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4075","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4075"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4075\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4077,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4075\/revisions\/4077"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}