The word 'struck' is the irregular past tense and participle of the verb 'strike'. 'Strike' itself comes from the Old English 'strīcan', meaning "to stroke, rub, go, move", which has Proto-Germanic origins. The semantic journey moved from the physical act of moving or stroking to the more forceful modern senses of hitting or impacting. The specific form 'struck' developed as an irregular conjugation within English, solidifying by the Middle English period, and represents a common pattern where strong verbs alter their vowel to indicate past tense.

This is the past tense and past participle form of the verb 'strike'. The root 'strike' originates from Old English 'strīcan', meaning "to pass over lightly, stroke, go, move". Its functional role is as an irregular verb form.