Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “D-Day” come from?

D-Day (English) comes from English D, from English dirham, from Arabic دِرْهَم, from Middle Persian 𐭦𐭥𐭦𐭭, from Ancient Greek δραχμή, from Ancient Greek δράσσομαι, from Proto-Indo-European dreǵʰ- — to be unwilling, vexed.

D-Day (English): The date of any major event planned for the...

Definitions

  1. The date of any major event planned for the...

Ancestry of “D-Day”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishDThe ordinal number fourth, derived from this...
2EnglishdirhamA unit of currency used in the Arab world,...
3Arabicدِرْهَم—
4Middle Persian𐭦𐭥𐭦𐭭drachm
5Ancient Greekδραχμήdrachma; drachm
6Ancient Greekδράσσομαιto grasp, take handfuls; I hold, seize; to hold,...
7Proto-Indo-Europeandreǵʰ-to be unwilling, vexed
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dreǵʰ- →