Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Miss” come from?

Mistress comes from Old French maistresse, feminine of maistre, from Latin magister meaning "master," derived from the comparative magis "more," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European meǵh₂- meaning "great."

Miss (English): Form of address, now used chiefly for an...

Definitions

  1. Form of address, now used chiefly for an...

Ancestry of “Miss”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishMistressUsed as the title of a married woman before her...
2Middle Englishmaistresse—
3Old Frenchmaistresse—
4Old Frenchmaistremaster; Master; magister
5Latinmagisterteacher; master; a title of the Middle Ages,...
6Proto-Italicmagisteros—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanméǵh₂isteros—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanméǵh₂sbig, great

Words derived from “Miss”

  • мисс
  • 미스
Every word from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂s →