The word 'timber' has a direct lineage from Old English, where it originally referred broadly to a building or the material used for construction. This sense of "building" is preserved in the related German word 'Zimmer', meaning "room." The core concept has always been tied to construction and wood as a primary material. Over time, its meaning in English narrowed to focus specifically on the wood itself, especially when prepared for building, and also to the standing trees that provide such wood. The semantic journey is from the general concept of a constructed edifice to the specific material from which it is made.

This is a simplex word of Old English origin. The modern form 'timber' is a direct descendant of the Old English word 'timber', which meant "building material, structure, a building." It is related to the Old High German 'zimbar' and the Gothic 'timrjan' (to build).