Where does “Procrustean” come from?
Procrustean (English) comes from English Procrustes, from Ancient Greek Προκρούστης, from Ancient Greek προκρούω, from Ancient Greek πρό-, from Ancient Greek πρό, from Proto-Indo-European pró, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.
Procrustean (English): Enforcing strict conformity through disregard of individual differences or special circumstances
Definitions
- Enforcing strict conformity through disregard of individual differences or special circumstances
Ancestry of “Procrustean”, step by step
Procrustean traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Procrustes
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Procrustes | A celebrated legendary highwayman of Attica, who tied his victims upon an iron bed, and, as the case required, either stretched or cut off their legs to adapt them to its length |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | Προκρούστης | Procrustes |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | προκρούω | stretch |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | πρό- | in front of; before |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | πρό | before; before, in front, forth, forward; before,... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pró | toward, leading to |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |