Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Cadence” come from?

Cadence comes from Middle French cadence, Italian cadenza, Latin cadentia, the noun form of Latin cadere meaning to fall, from Proto-Italic kadō and Proto-Indo-European ḱad-.

Ancestry of “Cadence”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishcadenceThe act or state of declining or sinking;...
2Middle Frenchcadence—
3Italiancadenzacadence; rhythm; third-person singular present...
4Vulgar Latincadentiafalling
5Latincadēns—
6Latincadō—
7Proto-Italickadōfall, sink
8Proto-Indo-Europeanḱad-to fall

Words derived from “Cadence”

  • Kadence
  • Kaidence
  • Kaydence
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱad- →