Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “-sphere” come from?

-sphere (English) comes from English sphere, from Middle English spere, from Old French sphere, from Latin sphēra, from Ancient Greek σφαῖρα, from Ancient Greek -ειδής, from Ancient Greek -ής, from Proto-Indo-European -ēs — Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...

-sphere (English): n"-sphere"; Designating a spherical field or...

Definitions

  1. n"-sphere"; Designating a spherical field or...

Ancestry of “-sphere”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsphereA regular three-dimensional object in which every...
2Middle EnglishspereA spear or lance; The Lance of Longinus; A barb...
3Old Frenchspheresphere
4Latinsphēra—
5Ancient Greekσφαῖραball, globe, sphere
6Ancient Greek-ειδήςlike, connected to, from the nature of, full of;...
7Ancient Greek-ήςadjective suffix
8Proto-Indo-European-ēsPrimarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds
9Proto-Indo-European-ess—
10Proto-Indo-European-osCreates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...

Words derived from “-sphere”

  • biosphere
  • lithosphere
  • ionosphere
  • rhizosphere
  • ionospheric
  • magnetosphere
  • photosphere
  • lithospheric
  • hydrosphere
  • microsphere
  • chromosphere
  • asthenosphere
  • magnetospheric
  • heliosphere
  • thermosphere
  • mesosphere
  • ecosphere
  • photospheric
  • exosphere
  • geosphere
  • biospheric
  • neurosphere
  • infosphere
  • cryosphere
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -os →