Wink
Old English wincian ‘close the eyes’, of Germanic origin; related to German winken ‘to wave’, also to wince1.
wiktionary
From Middle English winken(strong verb) and Middle English winken(weak verb), from Old English *wincan(strong verb) and wincian(“to wink, make a sign, close the eyes, blink”, weak verb), from Proto-Germanic *winkaną(“to move side to side, sway”), *winkōn(“to close one's eyes”), from Proto-Indo-European *weng-(“to bow, bend, arch, curve”). Cognate with Middle Low German winken(“to blink, wink”), German winken(“to nod, beckon, make a sign”). Related also to Saterland Frisian wäänke, Dutch wenken(“to beckon, motion”), Latin vacillare(“sway”), Lithuanian véngti(“to swerve, avoid”), Albanian vang(“tire, felloe”), Sanskrit वञ्चति(vañcati, “he swaggers”).
wink (plural winks)
Clipping of periwinkle.
etymonline
wink (v.)
Old English wincian "to blink, wink, close one's eyes quickly," from Proto-Germanic *wink- (source also of Dutch winken, Old High German winkan "move sideways, stagger; nod," German winken "to wave, wink"), a gradational variant of the root of Old High German wankon "to stagger, totter," Old Norse vakka "to stray, hover," from PIE root *weng- "to bend, curve." The meaning "close an eye as a hint or signal" is first recorded c. 1100; that of "close one's eyes (to fault or irregularity)" first attested late 15c. Related: Winked; winking.
wink (n.)
"a quick shutting and opening of the eyes," c. 1300, from wink (v.); meaning "very brief moment of time" is attested from 1580s.
