Middle English word luken comes from Proto-Indo-European *leug, Proto-Indo-European *lūǵ-, Proto-Indo-European *lew-, and later Proto-Germanic *leukaną (To pluck; pull up.)
| Dictionary entry | Language | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| *leug | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *lūǵ- | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *lew- | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *leukaną | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | To pluck; pull up. |
| lūcan | Old English (ang) | |
| lucan | Old English (ang) | To lock. |
| luken | Middle English (enm) |